Detective Teekshanaa marks Priyanka Upendra’s 50th film. The makers unveiled the first look poster of the film on Wednesday. Firmly holding on to a pistol, Priyanka looks uber cool in the poster. Directed by Trivikram Raghu and produced by Gutha Muni Prasanna and G. Muni Venkat Charan, Detective Teekshanaa will be releasing in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali apart from Kannada. In a career spanning more than two decades, Priyanka featured in multiple films across different film industries in the country.
In 2003, she married Kannada superstar Upendra and when asked about whether the relationship brought any change, she said, “The first thing is I learnt Kannada after I shifted to Bengaluru. After having children, I underwent emotional experience personally. I haven’t worked in Upendra’s Direction. We always talk about films and watch many films together. He is very passionate about Kannada literature. I learnt more about that part from him. That has helped me grow as an actor. A certain level of maturity will also come after children. It’s a completely new phase. I travelled a lot, knew about Karnataka culture, and worked with new people. But, with Uppi I have learned a lot.”
Did Priyanka ever feel restricted when it came to her choice of films just because she married a star? “In that aspect, I have a lot of freedom,” commented Priyanka. “We don’t tell each other what to do and not to do. We discuss. He gives his opinion and leaves the decision to me. Same thing for his films too. I say whatever I believe and feel. But, for my films, the ultimate decision will be mine. There is a huge platform and huge love from fans. So, pressure will be there not to disappoint them. I want to do strong roles, message oriented roles. I prefer doing roles and films which inspire women and children. Many married women on social media say to me that watching me in powerful roles makes them feel powerful. I like that empathy and I would like to maintain that.”
Looks like the Devaki star trusts director Raghu quite a lot. She says the film is about powerful, intelligent, brave women, “Director Raghu is very passionate and hard working. I have already worked with him and I know his dedication. When he just told me a line about the film, I got connected to it because it wasn’t done before with a woman protagonist. So, instantly Byomkesh Bakshi, Nancy Drew, came to my mind. Again it reflects powerful, intelligent, brave women. Raghu has a very good vision about visuals too. In the first two days itself when I saw the output, I knew I made the right decision. The whole team is really good. My kids are super excited to see me in this role.”
“You have to be fit to do an action film,” informed the actress, talking about the preparation she had undergone for the role. “I have to do it convincingly. We worked on how she should be, about her body language, little nuances, intricacies and details of the character. These got beautifully translated on screen and it looks very nice.”
More than a female centric film, the Rowdy Aliya star thinks her 50th film is a content oriented film, “I played an important character and there are also so many important characters in the film. It is a story oriented film. A fresh film with striking visuals and entertaining. I am really excited about that.”
Besides Detective Teekshanaa, the actress is currently filming Kartha Karma Kriya, Vishwaroopini Hulligemma, Khaimara and a Bengali film Master Angshuman. Apart from these The Virus, Kamarottu Checkpost 2, UgraAvatara are all set for the release.
