Samantha Akkineni thought 'The Family Man 2' would flop, calls it 'risky'
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"I have been put in this ‘cute girl’ slot. I thought this role would flop really badly or work really well. It completely hinged on the performance. It was very scary and risky for me," said actor Samantha Akkineni about her role Raji in 'The Family Man 2'.
South Indian actor Samantha Akkineni, who forayed into mainstream Hindi cinema with Manoj Bajpayee-starrer 'The Family Man 2' web series, as terrorist group member Raji, was apprehensive about taking on the project.
"I have been put in this ‘cute girl’ slot. I thought this role would flop really badly or work really well. It completely hinged on the performance. It was very scary and risky for me... I never expected so many people to call and message me (to appreciate my performance). I got calls from people who never called me before," she reportedly told a news outlet.
Samantha has received the Best Actors award at the Indian Film Festival Of Melbourne (IFFM).
“I don’t think I would sign anything thinking it will get me awards. I sign roles that I really believe in. The roles that I believe will make me a better person. But, the awards are always welcome as they have always inspired me to do better. In that way, I’m thankful for awards,” said Samantha about her recent win.
While Raji is being appreciated by one and all, prep for the role had come with its fair share of challenges. “I was given the role of a trained fighter with not much dialogue. So I had to make sure that I physically looked the part even though I am small. The body language and the physicality of the character was something I really worked on. It needed to look like not much thought was put into Raji’s mannerisms but actually, I put a lot of thought into it,” she added.
“I watched a lot of real-life footage and documentaries. That really helped me. Also, I worked with a bunch of great teams, including directors and stunt persons. Stunt master Yannick Ben has an amazing style of fighting. It was very, very unique. And I wanted to imitate his style. I don’t think he thought he had a particular style in the way he moved and fought,” she further added.
As for OTT platforms--her 'The Family Man 2' released in Amazon Prime Video--the actor feels it has opened new doors for artists. “OTT has been a really welcome change not just for actors but also for technicians. It is blurring the line between all the industries. It has become an amalgamation of all good talents. Audiences are also lapping up all kinds of content. One doesn’t need to worry about whether an OTT movie/series is commercial enough or romantic enough. You have so much opportunity to put out what you believe in and have an audience that will appreciate it,” she was quoted as saying.
However, Samantha Akkineni also believes that the charm of theatres will never go out of fashion.“It is something that India will never let go of,” she concluded.