'I'd prefer to be known as an actor than a heroine'

Confident girl

Sonu Gowda is the perfect example of the slow and steady winning the race. The actress, who made her debut on the big screen opposite Srinagara Kitty in Inthi Ninna Preethiya, went on to make a mark in other Kannada movies like Gulama and ‘Police Quarters’ and also ventured into Tamil and Malayalam films.

Now, she will be seen in Dyavare, a movie that will mark director Yogaraj Bhat’s debut as an actor. Playing the role of a reporter in the movie, Sonu says sharing screen space with Yogaraj Bhat was nerve-wrecking at first. “It’s easy to act opposite another artiste but when the person in front of you is a well-known director, there is a lot of anxiety involved. He used to ensure that every scene was perfect and even analysed everyone’s performance. It took me long to get over my nervousness and give my best shot,” she adds.

Known for her performance-oriented roles, one wonders if Sonu ever misses being the glamourous commercial heroine onscreen. “I would prefer to be known as an actor than a heroine. I enjoy working in movies where I can perform and show my talent and I choose films accordingly. This also means I may not always be the main lead or heroine but that doesn’t matter to me. Even today, people remember me for my performances in Inthi Ninna... and ‘Police Quarters’. It’s very satisfying as an artiste,” she adds.

Taking her performance a notch higher, Sonu will soon don a negative role in ‘Goa’. “It’s going to be interesting playing a character with negative shades. Since I am known for my bold or mature roles, I want to show variety in my performance as well. I will also be seen playing a very mellow character in Half Mentlu,” she says.

Coming to the other language industries, Sonu is working in a Malayalam movie called ‘One by Two’. “It’s very difficult acting in Malayalam as they are very particular about even little things. In this movie, I am cast opposite Murali Gopi and he is such a fantastic actor. When I first saw him act, I was in shock. He has been a real mentor to me during the shooting of this movie,” says Sonu, who will also be dubbing for the first time for this project.

Does she feel it’s difficult to survive in so many industries? “If you have talent, you can survive anywhere. You just have to be careful about the projects you choose and the team you are working with and everything else will fall in place,” she says.