Shriya Saran, an Indian actress who works predominantly in Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi-language films though aspired to become a well-known dancer, she became an actress with her film debut in 2001 with the Telugu film Ishtam, and had her first commercial success with Nuvve Nuvve. Saran subsequently appeared in several more Telugu films alongside Hindi and Tamil films. In addition to her work in films, Saran has been the brand ambassador for brands across India, endorsing beauty and health products. She was also the brand ambassador for Celebrity Cricket League for its first two seasons.
Shriya Saran is a versatile actress with a standing in multiple film industries, having done films in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, English, Malayalam and Kannada. We are all looking forward to her upcoming projects, Kazaa with Upendra and Sudeep, Music school with Sharman Joshi and a show with Dharma. In a Candid interview with Aparajita Jaiswal she relays how grateful she is to be a part of cinema and having lived in a country that is so beautifully united even though we have such diverse cultures and inhabit disparate worlds of thought.
She talks about taking a flight from Delhi to Hyderabad and how that experience changed her life, opening her to a range of cultures and then eventually learning multiple languages including Tamil. “This journey has taught me everything that I am today and it has made me stronger. It has made me understand the power of cinema and how beautiful it is. I’m so grateful that I’m part of cinema. Also, I feel it’s beautiful how language changes the flavour of people. Every language has a different sense of humour and different ways of telling stories but one thing that unites cinema is that one ‘camera’ that we act for and that one ‘action and take’. It’s magic that happens and that’s what makes us alive. I am so grateful I’m part of the cinema.”
Shriya Saran speaks about her experience working with Ajay Devgn, one of Bollywood’s gems and a legend. “With Ajay Devgan, I have worked in Drishyam 1, Drishyam 2 and RRR. Thankfully with Krishna’s blessings, they have all been very big hits. It was a pleasure working with someone as trained and as articulate as he is. He lights up the camera, he lights up the screen and he’s a very giving actor. He speaks with his eyes and expresses so beautifully with his eyes. He’s a wonderful actor. He gives a lot to the actor he works with too. It’s just amazing to work with him.”
Today’s world and today’s cinema is perceivably about beauty and the visual arts. Shriya talks about going back to her pre-pregnancy shape, being a public figure. “It’s a visual medium and I’m an actor. Visually, everything has to be perfect when I’m on stage and when I’m in front of the camera. So, there is the stress of losing weight and today, we live in an Instagram world where everything has to be perfect. There are filters and what not. I feel like it’s about the pressure that you put on yourself today. Today, I’m very respectful of my body and I love what my body has done for me. I’m very grateful for it, I’m very grateful to Krishna for my body and for my health. I’m moving towards being healthy, doing a lot of yoga, dance and kathak. It’s more about competing with my own self and being a better version of myself than trying to look like somebody else.”
Therapy for mental health issues amongst men and women in today's age and climate is a must and a rising issue. Shriya Saran comes forward to speak more about it. “I think that it is very interesting that mental health is being addressed, thanks to a lot of people. Somebody who really came forward and spoke a lot about it is Deepika Padukone and then Alia Bhatt’s own sister spoke about it. I was talking to Ishaan and his wife spoke a lot about it. So, a lot of people who talked about it were more honest about what they were feeling before it was supposed to be not cool to talk about it but now it’s more normalized and I’m very grateful to all the beautiful people who came out and spoke about mental health.”
Shriya Saran also talks about women empowerment and how it should be about equality more than anything else. “I think women empowerment for me is all about getting equal rights for women and men and respect. Just giving us equal opportunities and actually stop asking questions like ‘How will you work now that you are with child?’ Or ‘How will you work now that you are married?’. Just creating a space which is very favourable and easy for women to work.” Women empowerment means strengthening women with all the rights of social, economic, and educational needs. It is to create an environment having no gender inequality for women. It is to empower them with equal rights in the family, society, community, and workplace.
Everyone loves seeing Shriya and her relationship with Radha on her Instagram. She speaks very fondly of her as she says, “‘The mother’ has changed everything in me. Radha is everything to me. She’s my life, she’s my sunshine. I see her feet on the sand when she runs and when she touches water, her little fingers and she says these little little words: ‘Mama’, ‘Papa’. It’s just beautiful, every day’s a new day. I love her. She’s making me a better person. I love my work more now and I feel like today, I want to make her proud and everyday I’m at work, I’m on the set, I want to make her proud. I want her to watch my films one day and say ‘I love what you’ve done, Mama. I’m very proud of you.’"
