Bhoomika: A thinking actress
Whoever said that beauty and brains do not go hand in hand, surely have not met Bhoomika, the chiselled-feature actress who is taking Telgu filmdom by storm. The limpid-eyed Bhoomika, whose Kushi with Pawan Kalyan is the rage of the state, speaks with such clarity of thought and cogency, that you wonder whether Tollywood, which usually treats its heroines as mere ornamental pieces, will be kindly disposed to her.
'There is very little space for actress in this field,' she says with a refreshing candour. 'An actress still cannot ask about the story in a film in which she is going to act. The situation does not allow for that,' Bhoomika told a Telugu magazine. When she says this, her shapely eyes ooze conviction and ardour, confirming that it is not an exercise in headline grabbing.
In a sense, her daringly independent ideas stem from her upbringing. Born to a upright military officer and having travelled with him through his various postings across the country, Bhoomika naturally has a catholicity of views on most subjects. It has also imparted an enviable maturity and equipoise that is increasingly difficult to find in Tollywood.
As a bright faced college girl, she caught the attention of ad film-makers in Mumbai. Her campaign for Ponds powder became so popular, that inevitably the film offers followed.
It has not stopped since then.
Her first film in Telugu was Yuvagudu. In the aftermath of the mega success of Kushi, Bhoomika has been inevitably flooded with offers. Yet, contrary to the general grain, she has not jumped at them. Instead, she has decided to take things one at a time. Currently, she is doing only one Telugu movie and a Tamil film. 'I don ' t like to clutter my plate,' she says matter-of-factly. Her conviction is so deep-seated that she has refused a film with Manirathnam. (Yes, you read it right).
Bhoomika can afford to have such a laidback outlook because she does not see acting as a profession or a means to an end. For her, it is an interesting medium for communicating. She is into acting because she loves it. And it shows. Critics saw in her performances, in Kushi and Tamil Badri, a spark and spontaneity that even seasoned artistes find difficult to achieve. 'She is an absolute natural. Combine this with her beautiful looks, you have an actress who is bound to go places,' says a film critic.
Bhoomiaka ' s directors too have only words of praise for her. Badri ' s director Arun Prasad says that she is professional to the core. 'It was nice working with her.' Probably, Kushi director Surya too shares this view, albeit at a personal level. For, the latter is reportedly going steady with Bhoomika.
It is only when asked about Surya, Bhoomika goes on the defensive. 'He is a good director. It was a good experience to work under his baton. He brings the best out from his artistes.' But is she in love with him? 'No comments,' she escapes using the time-tested clich+. 'There has to be some suspense. The audiences always like that,' she says batting her eyelids disarmingly.
Whether she loves Surya or not, the fans love her. And for that, the producers will her.
