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The joy of acting in art films is different and challenging," says actress Soundarya who has had a comfortable innings of one decade in commercial films, both in Telugu and Kannada. She is currently revelling in the accolades she received for her role as Nagi in her maiden production Dweepa which has won many laurels. With State, National and International acclaim being conferred on Dweepa, Soundarya has changed her outlook to films. Here's the actress who won the Karnataka State Award for Dweepa, in a quick chat with Hansazone.com...

When did you get the idea of making Dweepa (Island)?

I was travelling with my brother Amarnath and a senior producer H.N.Maruthi sometime ago. During our discussion, the thought of producing a film cropped up in my mind. My brother and Maruthiji immediately accepted the idea. After the first round of talk, we decided on Girish Kasaravalli. We approached him with another subject but he narrated the story of Dweepa which is based on a novel written by Na.D'Souza. We agreed to do it.

You could have produced a film much earlier?

When we want our tastes to be reflected in the film, only then should we produce it. I waited for 10 long years to produce a competent film, as I wanted to make it a tribute to my father.

But why did it take nearly two years to complete?

The right climatic condition was the basic need. We waited for the rainy season as we missed one and that's how it took a long time to shoot. We struggled hard to make this film. A maximum portion of the shooting was in rain. The concept of the film is like that.

Did you expect the Award at the National level?

How many ever times the Award comes, the satisfaction is the same. I never did this for an Award. The wonderful task we fulfilled got us the Best Film Award at the National level. Personally, I did not expect it, although I did a pretty good job. But I got the Best Actress Award at the Karnataka State level. Dweepa has also bagged the Best Film Award and an Award for Cinematography at the State level.

Don't you think with this Nagi role in Dweepa you have a tough task of selecting roles from now on?

Yes it is true. After four days of performance, I thought to myself, that I had missed something. Art films give a wonderful artistic satisfaction.

Have you acted in any such art film earlier?

I have acted in director Kranthikumar's Nine Months. It was partly an art film.

Why did you take lot of time to show it to the media of Karnataka?

That's because the film was going to one or the other Awards at the International level. Added to this, director Girish Kasaravalli and I were also quite busy. We are together for Gruhabanga television serial also.

There was an idea in the beginning that Dweepa would be made in Kannada and English?

I agree. Even now the idea is there. We wanted to take our film to larger audiences in other countries, when a film gets the chance of participating in festivals of other countries. This is because only at the festival is the film seen by the competition. When we make it available in the English language and send it to the theatres, foreign audiences may like to see it. With this idea in mind, we thought of making Dweepa in English. The idea is still fresh and my banner will be the first to experiment on this. What is the reason for the delay in making an English version of Dweepa?

We would like to add songs to it. This is not there in the Kannada version. It is because, from my experience, in places like Japan, they love songs more.

Has Dweepa already participated in other festivals abroad?

Even before its release, the film had taken part in five international festivals.

Are you looking for one more Rajat Kamal from director Girish Kasaravalli?

We have decided to do one more film from our banner. Whether it is Girishji or someone else, has not yet been decided.

Soundarya one the most glam and talented actress is going to tie the nuptial knot soon. And that doesn't mean she is bidding adieu to films. The date of marriage is not yet fixed. Says Soundarya - "I will let you know the date of marriage in 10 days. Marriage doesn't mean I am going to quit movies. My husband is very broad minded. Infact, soon after my marriage, I am scheduled to act in a Tamil film. I still have a lot to do as an actress". Soundarya recently turned into a producer by making an offbeat film called – "Dweepam" which won her the National Award for the best producer. "I want to do more meaningful roles now onwards. Since the audience have accepted me as a commercial heroine, I want to act in offbeat films like Dweepam. Okay, I will strike good balance between these two."

What more? She and her brother Amar are producing a film called 'Black Sugar', which features many new comers and a new director. It seems Soundarya is not acting in the film, and she need not as she already acted in 200 films in all the four Southern languages. Currently she is starring in a movie opposite Mohan Lal in Malayalam and in two Kannada film. This proves - stars fade away, not actors