Samantha Ruth Prabhu praises Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone for doing action films

Mumbai: It's inspiring that female actors like Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone and Anushka Shetty are fronting major action movies, says south star Samanth Ruth Prabhu, who has also dived into the genre with her upcoming series, Citadel: Honey Bunny.

Directed by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, the series is part of the expansive global Citadel universe with its parent show featuring Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas, while Matilda de Angelis stars in the Italian version.

The India chapter features Varun Dhawan and Samantha as spy agents Bunny and Honey, respectively.

"I’m glad I discovered a new facet or genre that gets me excited, which is action. Many actresses are indulging or diving into action like Alia (Bhatt) is doing action, Deepika (Paduokone) and Katrina (Kaif) have always done action, Disha (Patani), and Kiara (Advani) are doing it now, and Kangana (Ranaut) has done action. Anushka (Shetty) has done action. It is amazing for women to take control,” the actor told PTI in an interview.

A major name in Tamil and Telugu cinema, Samantha is known for her performance in films like Ye Maaya Chesave, Eega, Neethaane En Ponvasantham, Mahanati and Super Deluxe.

Samantha, whose debut Hindi series The Family Man 2, also directed by Raj & DK, featured her in the role of the main antagonist, said most of her action sequences in the show were almost cut.

“But I’m glad they kept it," said the actor, who once wanted to play a female version of James Bond and Citadel: Honey Bunny is closest to her dream of portraying a spy on the lines of the famous fictional character.

"Who doesn’t want to do a lot of cool action and play a spy, I think that’s on every actor’s dream list, James Bond is the ultimate role to play, so that’s just a given. As actors, we are very excited about it. Doing action was very exhilarating,” Samantha said.

Now the actor wants to work in a comedy film with her Citadel: Honey Bunny co-star Dhawan.

“We will do it soon, a comedy movie,” she concluded.

The India chapter of the global drama Citadel, also starring Kay Kay Menon, Saqib Saleem, and Sikander Kher, will debut on November 7 on Prime Video.