Samantha Ruth Prabhu opens up about disrespect by designers, was asked 'Who are you?'

Pic/ Samantha Ruth Prabhu`s Instagram

Actor Samantha Ruth Prabhu, who swayed the nation with her moves in 'Oo Antava', is one of the most popular actors in India. Her upcoming Pan-Indian mythological romantic drama, 'Shaakuntalam' is all set to hit the big screens on April 14. In an interview, Samantha took a trip down memory lane to reveal that she and her colleagues down south were disrespected in the past over garments from designers.

The 35-year-old actress spoke about how far regional films have come in recent years, with movies in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. Samantha said, "It's absolutely wonderful. There were times when we south actors couldn't source garments from designers because they were like, 'Who are you? South actor? What south?'"

Also read: Samantha Ruth Prabhu was the only choice for the epic according to 'Shaakuntalam' director Gunasekhar

With designer Neeta Lulla on board, 'Shaakuntalam' features more than 3,000 costumes for the actors, supporting cast and junior artistes. "We've come a long way from there, haven't we? This inclusivity is quite amazing, and we're now finally where we should be."

According to director Gunasekhar, Samantha was the only choice for 'Shaakuntalam' for the film. Elaborating on the same, Gunasekhar said: "When I wanted to make the eternal love story of Shakuntala and Dushyant in an interesting backdrop of a beautiful whimsical forest much like a forest princess in a Disney kind of film, I wanted someone who could be relatable to the millennial audiences, and felt Samantha would be apt for this film and approached her."

"The film traces the emotional journey of a woman who falls in love and the challenges fate throws at her. She's a character of inner strength who depicts her emotions with dignity and grace in all that she does. Her truth is her strength, all these emotions can only be portrayed by a wonderful performer like Samantha and she was our only choice to be able to create this epic", he added.

Over the last two years, films such as 'RRR', 'KGF' franchise, 'Pushpa: The Rise' and 'Kantara', among many others gave a Hindi cinema a run for their money at the box-office.

(With inputs from IANS)