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Shruti Haasan credits her role in Pawan Kalyan’s Gabbar Singh as a career-defining moment. She praised director Harish Shankar and expressed admiration for Pawan Kalyan.
Shruti Haasan starred in Gabbar Singh with Pawan Kalyan in 2012.
Shruti Haasan, one of South Indian cinema’s most celebrated stars, recently reflected on her breakthrough role in Pawan Kalyan’s Gabbar Singh, calling it a defining moment in her career. She revealed how the 2012 blockbuster gave her the recognition she had been striving for, and why she considers Telugu cinema to be her true launchpad.
Speaking on Ranveer Allahbadia’s podcast, Shruti revealed she wasn’t originally finalised for Gabbar Singh, the Telugu remake of Salman Khan’s Dabangg. “I was supposed to be in Pawan Kalyan sir’s movie Gabbar Singh… Then, there was some issue and I was not going to be in it,” she recalled. However, director Harish Shankar strongly backed her for the part. “He really fought for me, saying that he saw me in the role and needed me,” she added, further stating, “I went, and my life just changed after that. That’s how I have the career I have today because Telugu gave me my first home of success.”
On working with Pawan Kalyan, Shruti didn’t hide her admiration for the actor. “I was intimidated. He was a huge star. But he was always very sweet, reticent, and quiet,” she shared. Comparing him to Tamil superstar Vijay, she added that both share a similarly gentlemanly and respectful presence on set.
When asked if she had ever expected Pawan Kalyan to step into politics back then, Shruti admitted, “No,” saying she never saw it coming. She praised his grounded nature and his connection to the people, as well as his fondness for farming. “He was so rooted. He often talks about farming and returning to the villages, and if you think about it now in context, that kind of person should be in politics,” she noted.
On the work front, Shruti Haasan is gearing up for the release of Coolie, where she plays a key role alongside Rajinikanth. Directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj, the film also stars Nagarjuna, Upendra, Sathyaraj, with a cameo by Aamir Khan and a dance number featuring Pooja Hegde. Apart from Coolie, she has an interesting film line-up including Vijay Sethupathi’s Train, Thalapathy Vijay’s last film Jana Nayagan and Prabhas’ Salaar Part 2.

Anindita Mukherjee works as a Senior Sub-Editor in the Entertainment team at News18 Showsha. She introduces herself as someone who is truly, deeply and passionately in love with SRK, films, shows and glitz – ba…Read More
Anindita Mukherjee works as a Senior Sub-Editor in the Entertainment team at News18 Showsha. She introduces herself as someone who is truly, deeply and passionately in love with SRK, films, shows and glitz – ba… Read More
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