Pragya Jaiswal: I took up ‘Akhanda’ with the trust I have in director Boyapati Srinu
The Hindu
Actor Pragya Jaiswal talks about being part of director Boyapati Srinu and actor Nandamuri Balakrishna’s action entertainer ‘Akhanda’
In mid-November 2020, when actor Pragya Jaiswal received a call for a meeting with director Boyapati Srinu, she did not expect a month-long filming schedule soon after. She flew down from Mumbai to Hyderabad for a narration. Look tests and trials followed, after which she was part of a 33-day first schedule for Akhanda, the Telugu action entertainer that brings together Boyapati and actor Nandamuri Balakrishna for the third time, after Simha (2010) and Legend (2014).
As Akhanda gears up for theatrical release on December 2, Pragya reminisces the narration that took place amid a whole lot of prep work: “He (Boyapati Srinu) is an amazing storyteller. When he narrates a sequence of events with so much passion, you will tend to believe it,” she says. The director is known for his larger-than-life masala films that require suspension of disbelief, to give in to some sequences that might seem outlandish.
In Akhanda, Pragya is cast as an IAS officer. She does not divulge much, but asserts that having worked with Boyapati in Jaya Janaki Nayaka (2017), she reposed faith in the director: “I remember how he narrated that story. He went into minute details to explain every scene. I expected a similar narration for Akhanda, but then a lot was going on in his office since the team had already begun filming. I got a detailed narration of the first half; then he told me that I have to trust him and this is a film I would not regret.” Pragya went on to be a part of the schedule that was filmed in Hyderabad, Thiruvannamalai and Goa.