In many of her films, be it an urban rom-com or a con-drama, Ritu Varma has enacted characters with a voice, and never considered pushovers. Yet, when director Hasith Goli gave her a detailed narration of Swag , she was surprised. Swag , the Telugu film releasing on October 4, is short for ‘Swaganika vamsam’; the story that unfolds over different timelines has Ritu in a dual role - as queen Rukmini Devi in the past, and civil engineer Anubhuti in the present.
Settling down for this interview in Hyderabad after returning from a shooting schedule in Rajahmundry, Ritu says, “I liked Hasith’s first film, Raja Raja Chora , and thought he would narrate a romcom. Nothing prepared me for what I was going to hear.” She describes Swag as an entertaining satire on gender dynamics, inheritance and lineage.
Satire on gender equations The story which touches upon concepts of matrilineal and patrilineal societies, Ritu explains, gave her the scope to do something she had not done before. “It felt like a breath of fresh air and came to me when I was eager to sign a Telugu film.” Director Hasith Goli and Ritu Varma on the sets of ‘Swag’| Photo Credit:Special Arrangement As Rukmini Devi, she portrays a domineering queen who does not take kindly to male heirs.
Hasith gave her a few references of queens of India and she also keenly observed Ramya Krishna as Sivagami in Baahubali . “We worked on Rukmini Devi’s look and body language. She is dressed regally, with jewellery, h.