Katrina Kaif recalls dancing with Balakrishna in New Zealand as old interview resurfaces

A 2008 interview clip of Katrina Kaif, in which she calls co‑star Nandamuri Balakrishna a “lovely gentleman” and recalls dancing with him in New Zealand, has resurfaced online as Radhika Apte’s criticism of the same actor’s film reignites debate. Katrina said the experience was “embarrassing” at first but forced her to drop her inhibitions while filming the song for the 2005 Telugu action picture Allari Pidugu. She added that the tourists watching the shoot made the moment memorable and that shedding self‑consciousness was crucial for her. The interview was part of Farhan Akhtar’s 2008 show Oye It’s Friday, where she also noted that Telugu cinema was new for her, that the makers seemed to like her, and that she “had a blast” in her first two Telugu movies. Katrina’s Telugu portfolio consists of Malliswari (2004) opposite Venkatesh and Allari Pidugu (2005) opposite Balakrishna, the latter directed by Jayanth C Paranjee, featuring Charmy Kaur and music by Mani Sharma, with some songs shot in New Zealand. After Allari Pidugu she stopped working in Tollywood and built a successful Bollywood career. Radhika Apte, meanwhile, told a Zoom chat that a Telugu film in which she had to marry her maternal uncle and romance a much older actor made her “hate everything” about the project; she did not name the film. Keerthy Suresh explained that such cross‑cousin marriages have historic roots in South Indian culture but are increasingly seen as outdated.

Context

The resurfaced clip highlights how early career experiences in regional cinema can shape a star’s confidence, while the parallel controversy underscores lingering cultural sensitivities around age gaps and marriage customs in South Indian films.