Mention Kicchu to Ragini Dwivedi, and she has loads to talk about her character and the film. “To begin with, audiences will get to see a slimmer version of Ragini,” she chuckless, adding, “I have a release after almost eight months.” Pradeep Raj’s directorial will be out in theatres this week, and is special for a few reasons for the Kicchu heroine. Apart from associating with Dhruv Sharma and with Sudeep making a special appearance, Ragini is leaving behind her usual glamorous roles and is all set to play a coffee estate worker. She is happy to be playing this kind of character, but doesn’t agree with the notion that de-glam characters are stronger ones.
“The thin line between glam and de-glam is overrated. You talk about the actor in the film, for the character he/she gets into. Whenever you are playing a glamorous role doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have character, or that a performance is better when there is little to no makeup involved. All we need to focus on is how one carries oneself, and how strong he/she can portray a role and relate to the character,” she explains.
Coming to her role as a coffee estate worker, Ragini is happy that Kicchu enabled her to explore a different genre. “The lives of people working on coffee estates, their culture, society and the local politics is something we rarely hear about. There are a lot of elements, which is why I was attracted to this film,” says Ragini, who was doubly excited when the director thought that she could try her hand at her different kind of roles. “When a filmmaker understands your capabilities and sees you as a performer, is a good step in itself. Recognition comes when an actor tries different kind of roles, and that is the case with my current projects - be it PC Shekar’s Terrorist or my upcoming film with Sharan. I am glad to be part of some unique films,” she says.
“Portraying a character about people from a lesser-known community gives you a thrill,” she says, adding, “While I was shooting for Kicchu, I got to interact with a lot of coffee estate workers, and that helped me understand my character better. There is no doubt that we, being urban women, work very hard. But to put in 12 to 14 hours of work on a daily basis and being the primary bread winners in the family is definitely not an easy job.”
On Sudeep’s guest appearance, Ragini says, “ It was Dhruv’s vision and wish, which was fulfilled by the actor. My respect for him has increased five fold for just being part of this film. He has been an idol as an actor and a friend to Dhruv, and Sudeep acknowledged that with his presence in the film,” she says.
About director, Pradeep Raj, she says that he is very talented and still has a lot of explore. “He has a lot of potential and is very creative. Raw films like Kicchu are best suited for him. I am happy that I associated with the director and would want to work him in films of different genres.
On asking Ragini whether she is looking forward to playing only certain kinds of roles, she replies, “You give me a challenge, and I will commit to it completely. All I need is to get associated with good films and the right kind of filmmakers.” Ragini signs of with a message to her fans, “I get excited each time I have a film release. I want people to come and watch my film and give their honest opinions. I am not the kind to say that this is the best film I have done, but every film I do, I put in hard work.”