Stakes are high for my craft as I need to retain trust of filmmakers: Radhika Madan

Mumbai: Radhika Madan says instead of worrying about the box office performance of a film, she focuses on retaining the trust of filmmakers by upping her craft as an actor.

The actor, known for movies such as “Pataakha”, "Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota”, “Angrezi Medium” and most recently “Kuttey”, said box office returns of a movie is something that is not in her hands.

"The stakes are high for my craft, not numbers as they are not in my hands. If I perform in a particular way and they (makers) come to me again, I need to retain their trust by working even harder and offering something that they have not seen before.

"So, the stakes are high in terms of retaining that trust and upping your art and craft. The box office numbers, the success and failure are all external and it is not in my hands. What is in my hands is hard work, honesty and I take charge of that,” Madan told PTI.

The Delhi-born actor said she strives to grow every single day as a performer.

"The only thing that is there in my hands is hard work, honesty, the greed to live different lives. I want to put all of myself into every project.

"It is the co-actors, the producers, the directors, every one of them as they extract something out of me which I didn’t even think I had in me. I feel blessed to be a part of this company and to grow every single day," she added.

Madan most recently starred in "Kuttey", which marks the directorial debut of Aasmaan Bhardwaj, son of critically-acclaimed filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj.

And going forward, the 27-year-old actor has an equally exciting line-up of movies that will show her in diverse avatars.

She stars in "Kacchey Limbu" and "Sanaa" as well as the Hindi remake of Tamil hit "Soorarai Pottru", headlined by Akshay Kumar.

“Kacchey Limbu”, directed by another first-time filmmaker Shubham Yogi, highlights the importance of freedom of choice. The coming-of-age movie has toured various film festivals, including the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in 2022.

Social drama "Sanaa" is helmed by Sudhanshu Saria of “Loev” fame. It is about a headstrong and ambitious girl, who is raging against an internal battle that is rooted in unhealed trauma. The movie was recently screened at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival.

"Right now, ‘Kacchey Limbu’ is doing festival rounds. We premiered at Toronto International festival, we are finishing three-four more international festivals and ‘Sanaa’ too has been doing festival rounds. I feel a sense of pride," Madan said.

The actor said she felt inspired by the story of “Soorari Pottru”, which was partly inspired by events from the life of Air Deccan founder Capt G R Gopinath.

She steps into the shoes of the character that was played by actor Aparna Balamurali in the 2020 movie.

The Hindi remake is being directed by Sudha Kongara, who had also directed the original. "It inspired me. I loved the original film and in it, Aparna played the part beautifully. The audience will have a fresh perspective. It is like watching a new film and that is what we are trying to do.

"And Sudha ma’am is so lovely and so open. She pulls out the best from everyone,” Madan said.