Rajinikanth is so grounded, says Radhika Apte

It’s human tendency to be fearful, but when irrational and intense, fear turns to phobia. Radhika Apte’s recently released film, Phobia, is based on agoraphobia — an extreme fear of open or public places. Directed by Pawan Kripalani, the film sees Radhika essaying the character of an artist Mehak who is trapped in her own house and can’t go outdoors as she suffers from agoraphobia. “Unlike the horror or thriller genre in Bollywood, you can’t just sit back, eat popcorn and leave. You’ll have to watch it to understand the intensity and extent of the fear,” says Radhika in an exclusive chat, adding, “I like films that make me think. Similarly, I like doing films that make the viewers think. If you take the film home with you, then it is a success for me. I’m a workaholic, so this kind of unconventional movie meant a lot of research and hard work for me to fit into the shoes of the character. The more work you give me, the merrier I am.”

Radhika is clearly not hungry for public attention. Here is a word of caution for those wanting to get a selfie clicked with the actress: “I don’t think I’m that known or famous; neither have I done any massive projects so far to make me that big. I hate clicking selfies with random people, it is a disorder!”

From movies like Badlapur, Hunterr and Manjhi: The Mountain Man to TV series, regional films and short films like Sujoy Ghosh’s Ahalya, where she played the sensuous, seductive young wife of an old man, Radhika has dabbled in varied media. “Shorts are a great gig... you prepare for a week, shoot for just two-three days, and you are done! But it is very difficult to make a good and meaningful short film. Although the process of making it is easy in comparison to a feature film, and gives you more scope for experimentation. For me, content is king. I don’t mind any platform as long as I like the content,” she affirms.

Categorisation of films is something that Radhika doesn’t believe in. She explains, “For me, films are either good or bad; either I like them or I don’t. However, I don’t like to categorise them as commercial or art cinema because at the end of the day, there is no such divide and every film aims at doing well at the box office; it is all business.”

In her next film Kabali, Radhika will be seen playing superstar Rajinikanth’s wife. About her experience of sharing the screen with the veteran actor, she says, “Rajinikanth was really sweet to me and so grounded despite being such a megastar. I was hoping I wouldn’t fumble in front of him, but he was very helpful and warm and that made working with him such a great and memorable experience.”

In order to prepare for her complex role in Phobia, Radhika did a lot of research, met varied people, consulted psychologists to understand more about this phobia and saw several online video clips. The film, she believes, will generate awareness about different kinds of phobias among people. It is the ‘climax with a twist’ that made Radhika sign this film. She says, “I really liked the ending and that made me sign the film instantly. At the time when the director approached me, I was co-writing something with a friend about panic disorders and I thought, ‘wow, this is serendipitous because I am actually working on something similar’ and immediately agreed to do the film.”