Actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu became a national sensation with her performance in the dance number Oo Antava from the Telugu blockbuster Pushpa: The Rise, starring Allu Arjun and Rashmika Mandanna. The actress has now opened up about the chart-buster, and how she was advised to turn down the opportunity that came to her in the middle of her separation from former husband Naga Chaitanya.
In an interview with Miss Malini, Samantha recalled how friends and well-wishers who had always supported her career choices, told her to reject the song. “I was offered Oo Antava while was in the middle of all of the separation. The announcement came and every friend of mine every well-wisher, and my family were like ‘you sit at home, you will not do an item song now just after you announced a separation and you will say no to this,” she said.
She also opened about her divorce with Naga Chaitanya, which came as a shock to fans of both actors. She continued, “I just thought, ‘Why should I hide?’ I did not do anything wrong. I was not going to wait for all of the trolling, abuse and hate to go away and slowly creep back in like someone who committed a crime. I was not going to do that. I gave my marriage 100 percent, it did not work out. But, I was not going to beat myself up and feel guilty for something I didn’t do."
Samantha, who is awaiting the release of her next film Shakunthalam, has also been sharing about her fight against myositis—an autoimmune condition that can cause muscles to become weak. Earlier this week, she said: "I think there is a lot going in my life in the last two-and-half years but my work really grounds and centres me. It gives me the energy to keep going. And, I usually don't let things affect my work, unless I am unable to get out of bed, which was the case for the last few months.
