‘Working with Jr NTR on Devara feels like a homecoming, makes me feel closer to mom’: Janhvi Kapoor compares her experience to Sridevi’s in Bollywood

Janhvi Kapoor, daughter of Sridevi, is making her debut in Telugu with Jr NTR's Devara. She said that the experience of doing a film in an unfamiliar language brought her closer to her mom.

By: Entertainment Desk

Chennai | January 4, 2024 01:44 PM IST

3 min read

Janhvi Kapoor will soon be seen in Devara.

One of the highlights of Jr NTR’s upcoming film Devara: Part 1 is that it marks the debut of Bollywood actor Janhvi Kapoor in the Telugu industry. In a recent interview with Film Companion, Janhvi opened up about how making her debut in Telugu is like a ‘homecoming’ for her. Janhvi’s mother, Sridevi, was a superstar back in the day in both Tamil and Telugu cinema, before she chose to shift her focus to Bollywood. Working in Devara, Janhvi was able to understand what her mom did decades ago.

Talking about working in Devara, she said, “It’s a lot of fun. I am having a blast. I think I have gotten to a point where, after doing all these films wherein I am dying in a freezer, dislocating my shoulder, or acting with a rat, I realise I am allowing myself to do what comes naturally to me which is like nautanki, dialoguebaazi, dancing, and just having fun. And doing the kind of roles I have grown up enjoying and loving. I am finally getting to do all in this film. I think I am going easier on myself and allowing myself to enjoy it. I think this is the perfect film to be able to do that.”

Also read – Janhvi Kapoor recalls ‘howling’ when she got the call about Sridevi’s death, reveals sister Khushi hasn’t cried since that day: ‘She started comforting me’

Janhvi compared her predicament in the Telugu film industry with Sridevi’s in Bollywood. “It is quite ironic, because when she started doing Hindi films, she didn’t know the language, and they called her a ‘parrot’. She would hear the dialogue and repeat it, and she was very good at it. She kind of felt alien in that environment, and I am going to Telugu cinema. I don’t know the language at all, and I am only phonetically familiar with Tamil. I record my dialogues, and my DOP Randy (Rathnavelu) calls me a ‘tape recorder’. So, I feel like I now have an understanding of what she did and it feels like home. Even before the film, I think they accepted me with open arms and so much love. Even on the sets, it feels like a big warm hug.”

Devara: Part 1, directed by Kortala Siva of Sirmanthudu fame, also has Bhaira, Prakashraj, Srikanth, and Shine Tom Chacko. Anirudh Ravichander is composing the music for the film, which will be released in 2024.

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