A radiant smile, intense eyes and a fearless attitude — British-born Indian model-turned-actress Nikesha Patel clearly brims with talent. Nikesha, who’s awaiting the release of 7 Naatkal, is already fed up of doing glamorous roles. “It’s not that I have issues doing them, but I’d love to pick roles that challenge me as an artiste. I refuse to settle for something which doesn’t interest me,” she smiles.
After debuting with SJ Suryah’s Puli in Telugu, Nikesha starred in Yennamo Yedho opposite Gautham Karthik, and featured in a few Kannada projects too. The actress laments that she’s not getting interesting offers down south. “That’s why I moved to Mumbai recently. I want to expand my horizons and work in Bollywood,” she adds.
Nikesha believes that with each film and every new role, she grows. “I’ve worked on 20 films so far and I’m done with romancing heroes. I want to move beyond glamour and do meaningful films that are women-centric. It would be nice to carry a film on my shoulders; I am confident I can do it. I feel there’s a dearth of roles for actresses,” she says.Citing Bollywood as an example, Nikesha points out how Indian cinema is changing. “The mainstream actresses in Hindi headline successful films these days. Starting from Sonam Kapoor to Vidya Balan, everyone has been experimenting. Heroines have taken centre stage and heroes do supporting roles. Things have changed a lot.”
The actress, who has the Tamil-Telugu remake of 100 Degree Celsius and Guntur Talkies 2 in the pipeline, takes criticism seriously. “I’ve heard people say that I am just pretty-looking and that I don’t get substantial offers in Tamil. Since then, I’ve been quite careful when it comes to signing films. Criticisms matter. But I don’t let them affect me. I grew up watching Madhuri Dixit on television and wanted to be just like her. From London, I came all the way to Chennai.”
Ask her about 7 Naatkal, and she says, “I’ll be brutally honest. What we shot seemed totally different from what was narrated to me. Some times, the narration will be great, but direction will be horrible. Other times, the script will be average, but the execution will be excellent. I am confused right now. I’ve not seen the film yet. So, I don’t know how it has come out.”
Is that why she was not a part of the audio function that was held in the city recently? “I was not invited to it. I am not hurt, but I didn’t get the opportunity to share the stage with my co-actors and team. It felt like I was left out.”
Did she ask why she was not invited? “It’s their decision and I can’t do much about it. All I can say is I’ve done justice to my role,” she tells us.
Speaking about her co-star, Sakthivel Vasu, she says she had a great time working with him. “He is a chilled out person but is very serious about his work. He’s got a powerful role to play.”
Nikesha, who’s a huge fan of Dhanush and Mani Ratnam, is looking to work with them some day. “I have watched Maari, Anegan and the Hindi version of Raanjhanaa. Dhanush is an inspiration.”