Pooja Hegde attends the premiere of 'Farrey' in Mumbai on Nov.22, 2023. File/AFP

Actress Pooja Hegde is currently busy shooting for the tentatively titled film “Suriya 44” in the picturesque locale of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. A source told IANS: “Pooja went to Andaman and Nicobar in early June to shoot and is expected to return in the first week of July. She will be shooting a major part of the schedule there.” The actress will be seen as the leading lady in Suriya’s film, directed by acclaimed filmmaker Karthik Subbaraj. It also stars Jayaram, Joju George and Karunakaran among others in a pivotal role.

“Pooja plays the female lead in the film that takes the story ahead and will be seen in a very different look as well," the source said. The soundtrack for the film is composed by Santhosh Narayanan, who has given music for films such as “Pizza,” “Jigarthanda,” “Iruthi Suttru,” “Saala Khadoos,” “Iraivi,” “Gulu Gulu” and “Anweshippin Kandethum.” He has also worked in the upcoming film “Kalki 2898 AD” starring Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, Prabhas and Deepika Padukone.

In addition to “Suriya 44,” Pooja is set to star alongside Shahid Kapoor in “Deva” and with Ahan Shetty in “Sanki.” Apart from this, she also has a three-film deal with a major production house in the South. It was in 2012 when Pooja made her acting debut in Mysskin's Tamil superhero film “Mugamoodi” starring Jiiva. She then featured in the Telugu film “Oka Laila Kosam.”

In 2014, the 33-year-old actress stepped into Bollywood with Hrithik Roshan’s “Mohenjo Daro,” based on the Indus Valley civilisation. In 2021, the actress was named in the seventh position on Forbes India's Most Influential Stars on Instagram in South Cinema. The actress was last seen in “Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan” starring Salman Khan. It also features Shehnaaz Gill, Raghav Juyal and Palak Tiwari to name a few.

Meanwhile, On the occasion of World Environment Day, Pooja shared the small steps she takes to be environmentally conscious, revealing that she carries a trash bag in her car whenever she travels.  Pooja, who recently participated in a beach clean-up initiative at Mumbai's Juhu beach, shared: "In life, if we can take some small steps then we can see good change in society. What I usually do is I always carry a trash bag in my car whenever I travel and I don't throw things on roads, beaches etc. So, I think if we follow these small little things we can make a big change." The diva, who was last seen in the movie “Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan” said: "We just need to encourage the culture of not throwing things here or there. I think we need to make these conscious decisions, and we need to take planet Earth as our home. We should do what we do at home." On minimal use of plastic, Pooja said: “I think we can use reusable plastic, and or we can try to use the same plastic bag again rather than throwing it.”

Indo-Asian News Service