January 29, 2012 Y. Sunitha Chowdhary
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It is truly a million dollar smile, full of warmth and transparent and it reaches her eyes. There is no diplomacy in her talk, she is straight, articulate, accessible and doesn't try to hard to be the darling of the media. Richa Gangopadhyay has done five films in two and a half years and all her work were with popular actors, she is no hurry to grab offers, is going by the flow and is enjoying every moment of her steady journey.
She says, "I have been very lucky to have worked with such big names in the industry - old and new - so early on in my career, but never planned it that way. I took up my projects based on the script and my impact in the film, so having worked with big stars has been a sweet bonus! I've learned so much from every one of my co-actors, who have been humble, professional and have given wonderful guidance to compliment me and help my growth as an actor."
The actor says her transition from Telugu to Tamil was a breeze. "I keep reiterating that I have not left one industry for another, but am happy doing good work in both languages! I have interesting connections with both States. My grandparents have lived in Hyderabad for over 20 years and my father went to school in coastal Andhra Pradesh, and I spent my first year in Coimbatore as my family lived there for one year before we moved to the US when I was three years old! I have a knack for learning languages and have been making a sincere effort in learning Tamil and Telugu fluently."
She's worked with Rana, Ravi Teja and now she's working with Prabhas in Varadhi, don't they tower over her in height? "I myself am a tower, so these guys are completely proportionate to my height on screen! I find it funny that people think I'm short after seeing me opposite Rana in 'Leader', and then get shocked to see me in person as a 5'8" tall chick!"
Her Tamil remake of Dabangg was a huge box-office hit and avers that Dharani, the director made sure to keep the same spirit adding his gusto and flair to adapt to the Tamil audience. "I was extremely happy having been selected by him to reprise Sonakshi Sinha's role, which was appreciated loads. Also my role in Nagavalli and Mayakkam Enna, and the latter in fact focused mainly on the female character's importance."
The actor feels doing a film in her mother tongue has its own special charm, a Bengali film wasn't a planned move. She quips, "It had always been a dream of mine to do a Bengali film, and lo behold, I was approached, after my recent Tamil releases, to act opposite Bengali cinema's biggest superstar, Prosenjit Chatterjee, in the remake of 'Vikramarkudu'!
My family is really happy that I'm dubbing my own voice for the first time, in a language my relatives everywhere will be able to understand. Coincidentally, the Bengali film industry is also called 'Tollywood', as it is based in Tollygunge, Kolkata. Working with an entirely Bengali-speaking team makes me feel like I'm just hanging out with my extended family!"
Richa's immediate goal is to just to keep the momentum of good work rolling, and staying mentally and physically fit, balanced and happy. She signs off, "I'll keep up my conviction of selecting my films based on role and script, and do roles of various types to let people recognize me for my versatility. I want to learn Telugu and Tamil fluently, so I can dub for my films and connect with the cultures on a deeper level."
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