A mutual agreement

Sumana Kittur’s Edegaarike has a new heroine now. Earlier, Bhavana was supposed to play the lead role. But now, she has been replaced by Aakanksha of Olave Mandaara fame.

The reason for this sudden change was because Bhavana suddenly fell ill and the doctors advised her to not face the arc lights.

While the director wanted to wait till she recovered, Sumana tells Metrolife that it was Bhavana who encouraged her to look for another heroine.

“This is like a dream project for me and I really wanted Bhavana to act in it. She fitted the role perfectly but unfortunately, her illness was delaying the project and since most of my shots require strong lights, it was impossible for her to face the camera for a while,” says Sumana. It was a mutual agreement, says Sumana.

“It’s not everyday you meet an actress who steps back so graciously. I felt so bad that we had to look out for another leading lady but Bhavana was very encouraging and told me that we would work again,” she adds.

Soon, the director found Aakanksha to play the role. Impressed with her performance in Olave Mandaara, she says, “I needed someone who had a mature face and could pull the role off with ease. It was difficult at first but then someone suggested Aakanksha. I immediately watched Olave Mandaara and felt she could fit the part.”

Aakanksha has completed the first schedule and says she has no qualms of being the second choice for the film. “This is a highly performance-oriented role. The fact that they thought I could do justice to the part despite being just one film old is all that counts for me,” she adds.