Sonakshi convinced Anurag Kashyap to turn actor

Actress Sonakshi Sinha, who will share screen space with director Anurag Kashyap in Akira, says she tried to convince him to take up acting full time.

About working with Kashyap, Sinha said: “It was very good, I was convincing him to become an actor. He has fit the role and character so well, you’ll connect with him in that way because you’ll actually be scared when you see him on screen. He is a great actor.”

Kashyap plays a negative role in the film, in his first full-fledged role as an actor. The film also stars Konkona Sen Sharma.

Previously, Kashyap has appeared in cameo roles in numerous films and had a substantial role in I Am.

Being a director, did he interfere in filming? Sinha said: “No, he was aware of the fact that he is coming on the sets in the actor’s capacity, so he wouldn’t share his ‘tippaniya’ (inputs). He was fantastic to work with. He is not interfering at all despite being a director.”

The film is a remake of Tamil film Mouna Guru directed by Santha Kumar which had a male protagonist but Akira will be a female-centric film, directed by A.R. Murugadoss.

“This role was physically as well as emotionally very grueling. Some of the sequences that we shot and some of the places we have shot in, I never imagined myself in situations like that before. So, probably my most challenging role so far,” said Sinha.

“I had to train in mixed martial arts, had to just train for a month and half and I was ready. I had to really up my game. And luckily I have been into sports when I was a child, that’s where the energy and the strength comes from and I really enjoy it,” she said.

“When something really pushes you to the edge and challenges you, that is when I get really excited. And Akira has done that to me in so many ways, it’s been a fantastic experience and so fulfilling,” she added.