You’ve seen them scorch the screens in Tollywood, Sandalwood, Kollywood and Mollywood. And now, these stars and starlets are making their grand entry into the most coveted ‘wood’ — Bollywood. Numerous heroes and divas who’ve attained stardom down South are foraying into B-town this year.

The month of January saw Telugu actor Rana Daggubati, nephew of popular Telugu actor Venkatesh, enter B-town with Rohan Sippy’s Dum Maaro Dum. Recently, Kajal Aggarwal (yes, that’s the lady who won hearts in the blockbuster Telugu flick Magadheera) hit the jackpot in her very first Hindi film (as a lead actress) Singham. Goan beauty Ileana D’Cruz, who has starred in hits like Pokiri, will make her debut with Anurag Basu’s Barfee. Actress Charmee, who won critical acclaim for films like Anukokunda Oka Roju and Mantra, made her big screen Hindi appearance this year with Puri Jagannath’s Buddah Hoga Tera Baap and will be seen in the upcoming movie Zilla Ghaziabad. Model-turned-actress Taapsee Ponnu who has acted in Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil movies will be seen in David Dhawan’s remake of Chashme Badoor. There are also rumours of South superstars Anushka Shetty and the one-film old Samantha Ruth Pabhu making their debuts in B-town.
What drives these actors to venture into Bollywood when they already have a big name down South? “I explored the world behind the camera before I decided to make the transition as an actor. I did Dum Maaro Dum because I liked it as a film and wasn’t really thinking about anything beyond that. I have always been keen to put together an eclectic filmography for myself with films from different genres. This naturally lends itself to me doing films in different languages,” says Rana, who made his debut in Shekhar Kammula’s Telugu film Leader.
Just because this hottie was well received in B-town, he’s not shifting base completely to Mumbai. He currently has two films in his kitty — Department in Hindi and Nee Ishtam in Telugu.
“I’m in talks for films in both Hindi and Telugu and even in Tamil. Yes, it has been extremely hectic and I would confess to living out of a suitcase, but I am completely enjoying this pace of life,” he says. And no, he hasn’t been treated any differently just because he’s from the South. “The process of filmmaking is pretty much the same and does not lend to any kind of differential treatment,” he says, adding, “Films made in Mumbai are for the entire country, so Southern actors working in films in Mumbai is quite a natural transition, as it has been in the past. Venkatesh, Nagarjuna, Chiranjeevi and Rajinikanth too were part of very successful Hindi films. One probably didn’t see more of them in Hindi films because they were already very well-established in their respective genres and industries.”
Established actresses in the South like Asin Thottumkal, Shriya Saran, Genelia D’Souza and Trisha Krishnan too have tried their hand at Hindi cinema. While Shriya made her Hindi debut with Awaarapan, Trisha was seen in Priyadarshan’s Khatta Meetha. Genelia has done quite a few Hindi films and so has Asin and both the actresses will be seen in more Hindi ventures.
Amongst the Southern sensations to be making her B-town debut this year is Ileana D’Cruz. A film with Bollywood heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor, directed by Anurag Basu — what better a debut than this? Having at least 16 South films to her credit, she says, “Acting in Bollywood was definitely on my mind but I wasn’t in any rush. I’ve waited patiently for the kind of film I thought would be the right launch for me in Bollywood and I believe Barfee is just that.”
Adds Ileana, “We as actors experiment with the kind of roles we play in each film and now we are trying out working in different languages too. It’s great that we have the opportunity to work in such diverse film industries.” And unlike some actresses who have done so in the past, she isn’t moving completely to Bollywood. “I am not shifting base to Bollywood. I will definitely continue working in the South. I think it’s just a balancing act and it depends on how you handle it.”
She too hasn’t felt any differential treatment. “I think people respect you for the level of professionalism you show in your craft. As long as you are out there giving your 100 per cent everyday on the sets, people shouldn’t have any reason to treat you any different,” says Ileana.
When she got an offer to act in her own language, actress Taapsee Ponnu was delighted. Hailing from Delhi, Taapsee has acted in Telugu and Tamil films previously. “Bollywood has a national audience and regional cinema has a different kind of audience. If you’re lucky enough to fit into both, then nothing like it. But if you’ve already made your mark in the South, uprooting yourself from there and completely moving into a new terrain is not a safe bet. When you’re already ruling somewhere, then there’s no pointing shifting completely. But expanding your act is okay.”
Producers prefer actresses with sufficient experience over a newbie. “When they are getting a groomed product in hand, why would they waste and invest time on a newcomer, unless they have specific requirements?” says Taapsee. As for the affordability factor, she says, “Tamil and Telugu actresses are paid really well. But compared to the top notch heroines in Bollywood, there may be a difference.”
Bunny Vasu, who recently produced the Telugu hit 100% Love, says, “A lot of Southern actors and actresses prefer foraying into Bollywood as it’s a national medium. Everybody wants to go there — even directors. Another factor is the pricing; these girls will enter Bollywood at prices lesser than they charge for South films. Whatever amount the Bollywood producer pays will be okay with them as all they want to do is get an entry into Bollywood.” According to a source, Ileana is charging 50 per cent of what she charges for her South films for her Bollywood film.
Producer Vasu mentions how a lot of these actresses are from the North and adds, “They can even dub for themselves, thanks to their good Hindi. Big heroines usually don’t last more than 10 years in the film industry. So actresses like Ileana who’ve been around in the South for eight to nine years, will want to look at Bollywood as an avenue before it’s too late.”