Keerthy Suresh and Radhika Apte are all set to headline Akka, an upcoming Netflix series that chronicles female ambition, power and authority through the world of women-led gangs.
Ahead of its digital premiere, the actors have opened up about their experiences of navigating the entertainment industry as ambitious women, with Keerthy revealing that she has worked with insecure male co-stars who projected their insecurities onto her.
Speaking to News18, Keerthy admitted that her experiences with certain co-stars even made her question herself. “I don't know where this insecurity comes from when people see ambitious women. I've been in situations where I've worked with a few insecure co-actors,” she said.
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The Mahanati actor recalled how she initially struggled to understand the situation and began doubting herself. She eventually realised that the problem lay elsewhere.
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“I never understood or figured this out during the process. I started feeling that something is wrong with me. I thought it was me who was insecure. But towards the end of the shoot, I understood that it wasn't me. I realised that it was their insecurity that was making me feel insecure. Ambitious women can be intimidating after a point,” she remarked.
Radhika Apte On How Not All Men Are Threatened By Ambitious Women
While Keerthy spoke about dealing with insecure male co-stars, Radhika Apte pointed out that not all men feel threatened by ambitious women. The actor further observed that women, too, can sometimes practice sisterhood selectively.
“Not all men are threatened by ambitious women. Yes, there are some men who are like that, but I've also met a lot of men who are working hand-in-hand with women and that has been great,” Radhika said.
“Alternatively, there are a lot of women who you expect will support you but they don't. People are people, after all. Having said that, nowadays, sets have a lot of women. There's more equality than there used to be,” she added.
Keerthy Suresh, Radhika Apte On Why Female-Led Gangster Films Are Rare
The actors also discussed why action-heavy gangster stories featuring women remain relatively uncommon on the big screen.
Radhika believes this could be linked to the way audiences have historically encountered stories about gangsters, with men dominating the narrative. “We know more about male gangsters in real life. We've grown up hearing stories of only male gangsters in recent history. That's probably where it comes from,” she said.
Keerthy, meanwhile, believes the lack of female-led gangster stories could also stem from filmmakers' unwillingness to place women at the centre of such narratives. However, she feels the industry is gradually changing.
“Also, maybe, not every director has the belief that a gangster, action-oriented story can be pulled off by a woman. But it doesn't work like that anymore. When a lot of women come together or even a single woman stands up for herself, people will be in, provided the content is good. I think change has begun,” said the actor, who also plays Dorothy in the upcoming project.
All About Akka
Produced by YRF Entertainment, Akka is written and directed by Dharmaraj Shetty. The series also features Tanvi Azmi, Mahesh Manjrekar, Anshuman Pushkar and Monica Panwar in pivotal roles.
The upcoming series is the latest project to come out from the collaboration between Netflix and YRF Entertainment. Their previous titles include The Romantics, The Railway Men, Maharaj and Mandala Murders.
Akka will premiere on Netflix on October 30.
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