Exclusive: Giving it all up at my peak for marriage was my hardest decision: Rakshitha

Last week, actress, television personality and producer Rakshitha completed 20 years in showbiz since her debut film, Appu. In a candid chat, she recollected some of her most loved moments and shared details of her most cherished friendships through these years.

I cannot believe it’s been twenty years. What an amazing movie I debuted with and I met so many amazing people, who have ensured I have had a great life.It is difficult for an actress to be active and relevant after two decades.

Giving up acting at my peak when I got married was the most difficult thing for me to do. It took a lot for me to give it all up. It is a decision I have regretted so many times. But here I am today, still part of showbiz in different ways. I was born in the industry and raised looking at the magic of celluloid. There is nothing more that I know of and nowhere else I can be. I will be a part of this world till my last breath as this is what I love doing. I belong here. This is what I was meant to do. This is who I am meant to be.

I get emotional when someone speaks about Appu. This happened because of Parvathamma more than anything else. I wouldn't have been Rakshitha without her. Two decades ago, when I had these aspirations, it was only Parvathamma Rajkumar who said yes to me. I am blessed that I got such a great launch. When I drove into Gandhinagar back then, I could see leading production house offices like Eshwari and Vajreshwari. It was mesmerizing to walk into the office and meet my team. For me, meeting Parvathamma was the biggest takeaway. I have days now when I think I could have learnt so much more from her and I wish I had spent more time with her. She had power, sweetness, boldness and yet, a motherly nature, which made her an amazing woman. I've never met anyone else like her.

Puri Jagannadh is my godfather. I am constantly in touch with him. He has stood by women. He had launched me across three different languages with the same film's remake. It was a nice experience. When Puri called me to Hyderabad to do Idiot, I never knew how big it would be. There was a 20 feet poster of Ravi Teja and me when I drove in and it was overwhelming. Puri taught me a lot of things, including how to be right in front of the camera and also how to be brave. I used to be very scared, but he gave me that confidence to be who I am today. He was also that person looking out for me in this industry.

I have always cherished my friendship with Puneeth. I remember going to the launch of Abhi. I was offered Veera Kannadiga by Parvathamma, but I was doing Andhrawala then and the dates were clashing. It was being shot simultaneously while I was shooting for my Telugu film in Hyderabad on the same set. I recall going to the set to meet Appu.

I shared a great friendship with him and we used to have so much fun on the sets. He made it very comfortable for me. I recall times when he visited me on the sets of Madhurey in Chennai. He used to be the person who knew some of my closest kept secrets at that point of time.

I am thankful for my pairing with Darshan which led to a friendship that has grown strong. He tells me one simple thing, it doesn't matter whether I remember him when I am happy, but when I am sad, even if I don't recall him, he will be there behind me. He is a big strength for me. While I don't ask him for anything, he is most mindful. He was one of the first to call and congratulate me when Ek Love Ya released and said he was happy that I managed to successfully launch my brother in the industry.

There are many. Among them, I am also great friends with Jagapathi. I might not meet him often and managed to see him after a decade in Mysuru recently. I got to know he was shooting in the city and I was there for the muhurtha of my husband's new film. Our friendship is such that I could go and wake him up late at night - we have that leeway. I joke that I am his part-time manager in Kannada films, as I tell him what films to do.

When I did Swayamwara, I didn’t know anything about television. It has been a lot of learning and growing, thanks to the support by the teams I have worked with since then.

I want to do good films. I am constantly in touch with directors looking for scripts. I am obviously waiting to start my new film with Raanna. I am not thinking of pan-India or anything. I want to make beautiful films, small or big is irrelevant to me.