‘I never imagined this for my first film’: Sanskruti Jayana on playing Satyabhama in Krishnavtaram

Sanskruti Jayana and Siddharth Gupta (Pictures via Instagram)

Actress Sanskruti Jayana is set to make her acting debut with Krishnavtaram, where she essays the role of Satyabhama, one of the most prominent figures in Lord Krishna's life. In an exclusive interaction with mid-day, the actress opened up about stepping into the shoes of the iconic character, discovering unexpected similarities with Satyabhama, and overcoming professional setbacks before landing the film.

Sanskruti Jayana on portraying Satyabhama in Krishnavataram

Talking about portraying Satyabhama, Sanskruti described the experience as both a privilege and a blessing. "Yesterday I was talking to my mother and she told me that I am kind of the first actor to play Satyabhama. So that's a privilege as well for me," she shared.

However, she admitted that there was limited material available about the character. "I didn't have much information about her. Whatever I had about her was through the script and through my director," she said.

For the actress, mythological figures are far more than just screen characters. "We cannot pick these characters. They are not just characters. They are a part of our history. To be able to play such characters is a blessing in itself. To get such a character in our first film is a big deal. So challenging is secondary."

Interestingly, Sanskruti revealed that her director often told her that she was quite similar to Satyabhama. "When I signed the film, he kept telling me that you are very much like Satyabhama. Be yourself and stuff like that. I never believed that," she recalled.

Over time, she began to understand what he meant. "I find Satyabhama very relatable. We feel the same. We have a husband. We feel like he is mine. Why will I share him? All of those questions that Satyabhama had."

According to Sanskruti, Satyabhama's emotional journey is what makes her so compelling. "Eventually she comes to a point that she is in love with a God. He is not just any other person. From there to going to unconditional love is her journey."

The role also strengthened her own connection with Lord Krishna. "My encounter with Krishna Bhagwan was mostly through this film. I knew about him, but I was not that close to him," she shared, adding, "How do we take ourselves to unconditional love? That is a learning through Satyabhama."

On challenges Sanskruti faced before bagging her debut film

The actress also reflected on the challenges she faced before her debut. "I think for everyone the journey is difficult. I don't see it in a negative way," she said. Before Krishnavtaram, three projects failed to materialise despite contracts being signed.

"This happened after three contracts which did not happen. I think what has to happen will happen. It could not have been better," she said.

Looking back, Sanskruti never imagined her first film would give her such a memorable role. "I never genuinely thought in my dreams that I will be playing such an iconic character for my very first film."

She also praised the film for its strong female representation. "It is very rare in this industry that women characters are written like this. You will definitely see this film from the perspective of Satyabhama, but every woman character has been presented so beautifully. As an actor who is a female, for me, doing such a film is a blessing."