Actress Shriya Saran has reportedly been roped in to play a queen opposite Nandamuri Balakrishna in his 100th movie "Gautamiputra Satakarni," directed by Krish aka Radhakrishna Jagarlamudi.
"Gautamiputra Satakarni" is a much-talked-about film as it is set to be a landmark in the career of Balakrishna. The casting of the heroine for this project has generated a lot of curiosity among film-goers. The names of several leading actresses were linked with this movie.
The latest we hear is the character of the female lead is a queen, which requires an actress with a lot of experience. Hence, the makers of the movie are looking for a senior actress to do justice to the role. Of late, it was rumoured that Krish had approached Shriya Saran with an offer.
Now, buzz on social media has it that Shriya Saran has accepted Krish's offer, will play the queen opposite Balayya. Leading Telugu film critic and trade expert Idlebrain Jeevi tweeted: "Breaking news: @shriya1109 is confirmed as heroine for #GautamiPutraSatakarni #NBK100 in KRISH direction!!! [sic]"
"Gautamiputra Satakarni" is touted to be a period drama based on the life of a king of the same name, who ruled the Satavahana Empire (present-day Deccan region of India) durining the second century CE. Krish has also written the story and screenplay for the movie, while Sai Madhav Burra has penned the dialogues for it.
"Gautamiputra Satakarni" was launched at a grand opening ceremony in Hyderabad on April 22, and its formal shooting began abroad on May 9. The film unit has canned some important scenes in the first schedule, which was held in Morocco for two weeks. The team wrapped up that schedule on May 23.
Balakrishna is currently touring the U.S. and will start shooting for the second schedule of "Gautamiputra Satakarni" once he returns. Now, the art director is busy creating special sets for this schedule at Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad. Shriya Saran, who had acted with Balayya earlier in "Chenakesava Reddy," is expected to join the actor for its shoot soon.
