Story first, everything else later

Ahilya. Pics/By Special Arrangement, Instagram

Having grown up with a deep respect for nature and environment, Ahilya found her next step in veteran filmmaker Singeetam Srinivasa Rao's Telugu musical Sing Geetham. Produced by Kalki 2898 AD director Nag Ashwin, the film released on June 12 and followed her Bollywood debut in Shoojit Sircar's I Want to Talk.

One would assume that after entering the Hindi film industry, the actor would swap Auroville, near Puducherry, for Mumbai. But the social media influencer-turned-actor chose to stay put to remain grounded, stay connected to nature, and shield herself from industry politics. It was on the set of her debut film that she learnt to "pick films that have a good story over everything". She says it is the one piece of advice she received from Sircar. "He told me I should always choose the story and the character when it comes to acting. I still carry that forward," she tells mid-day.

Directors Shoojit Sircar, Singeetam Srinivasa Rao

Working with Rao, 94, taught Ahilya to have fun with her work, shaping the kind of projects she wants to pursue. "I don't think my Telugu debut was a conscious move where I thought, ‘I want to show that I can be a pan-India actor.' The project itself was exciting."

What is ‘Sing Geetham' about?

‘Sing Geetham' is a whimsical musical fantasy about a mining village threatened by corporate greed that is struck by a mysterious curse, forcing its eccentric residents to communicate entirely through song