Dressed in white, Sakshi Agarwal’s energy at our campus was effervescent. She has been receiving a lot of positive responses for her role in Theeyor Koodam, a survival thriller directed by Shakthivel Selvakumar. “This is my third film with the director and he knows exactly what I want and what he wants from me.
As far as Theeyor Koodam goes, I was excited when I heard the script because I could relate so much to my character. The film being a survival thriller, it revolved around integrity and morality versus survival. People talk so much about their principles and morals but when fear takes over, it is a matter of survival, do they still hold their morals and ethics close to them? The story revolves around that. I had fun shooting for it,” she begins.
The story takes place inside a house. Despite that, Sakshi says that there was always a place for creative liberty and things were organic on sets. “In fact, that kept the play crisp and tight with beautiful timing. However, it was a little challenging since the entire film was riding on my shoulders. I had to stick to the skin of the character while keeping the audience intrigued.
Though the film was not physically demanding, it was mentally and psychologically taxing to keep all these intact. It was relatable to the audience because it put them in a situation what they would have done if they were inside that house,” Sakshi immediately adds that the location, the house shown in the film is also one of the characters in the film. “First few days we felt like going to a set to shoot Theeyor Koodam.
After that, we started living in the house—we ate there, changed costumes there and literally lived there. As the scenes kept evolving and shooting progressed, shooting for the climax and crucial sequences in the living room was challenging but we pulled it off. Shakthivel gave us a lot of scope for improvisation in a limited space,” says the actor.
Having worked in films like Kaala, Aranmanai 3, Bagheera, Fire and Viswasam among others, Sakshi admits that she has been conscious of what she signs. “It has nothing to do with my marriage. Just like my parents, who were supportive when I quit my corporate career for films, my husband-a long time friend of mine too is equally supportive of what I do. I am choosy because of my evolution as an actor over the years and I take up a film only when I feel I have something to contribute to,” she remarks.
Sakshi’s social media followers flood her private message tabs asking her for fitness tips. Her fitness videos went viral since the lockdown and she still continues to amass followers for the same. “Apart from my workout, I have also realised that nutrition and a healthy lifestyle too are important. Eating choices make a lot of difference. Especially for women, it is important to take the right amount of protein and the right diet apart from hitting the gym hard,” the actor states.
She also divulges on her upcoming projects to us. “I am currently doing a Telugu web series. An official announcement will be made soon. I have completed my Tamil web series and it is in post-production. There is another Malayalam film, which will be action packed apart from another couple of projects,” concludes Sakshi.
Apart from my workout, I have also realised that nutrition and a healthy lifestyle too are important. Eating choices make a lot of difference