Dhanush is more grounded now: Tamannaah

She’s been away from Kollywood for some time now, and the reason, she states, is that she’s been busy with Telugu cinema. “I’m shooting for a film titled Badrinath currently,” she states, even as she awaits her 100% Love to release.

In Tamil, she has Venghai with Dhanush to look forward to. Her character in the film is very much like those in Hari’s films — a rural girl with a lot of pluck. “Yes, I play a rural girl and so, I had to dress accordingly,” she says, “I have some really nice emotional scenes and I hope I’ve done justice to them. Sometimes, it’s very difficult to get the opportunity to perform in full-fledged commercial films but Venghai is different as it gave me a lot of scope.”

Did she observe anyone to understand the role better? “Actually, no,” she says, “I’ve been in Kollywood for long enough to know about the dressing style and body language of rural girls. And, my character in Venghai is quite sober. I think after Kalloori, this was the first time I got to be sober.”

According to her, the film is director Hari’s baby. “It’s one of the most meticulously planned shoots of my career,” she says, “All credit should go to Hari, who plans everything to the T. He also remembers every tiny detail, like what colour earrings I wore when we did the last shot and that ensures continuity. And, he always has plan B in case anything goes wrong during the shoot. As actors, we sometimes don’t even realize that something was amiss in the first place!”

She’s also full of praise for her co-star in the film, Dhanush, with whom she teams up for the second time after Padikkathavan. “He was grounded then,” she says, “And, he seems even more grounded now, even after his brush with success and fame with his recent Aadukalam! We share a great rapport and that’s come out brilliantly on screen.”

The actress’ Tamil has improved after shooting for this film. “Though I haven’t dubbed for the film, I really have learnt more words by interacting with everyone on the sets in the local language. In fact, even now when I’m shooting for my Tollywood flicks, I make it a point to interact with the unit members in Telugu. I’ve become so comfortable in both these languages that I think Hindi might be more difficult now!”