Venkatesh suggested Ritika’s name

The inclusion of Ritika Singh as the lead actress in the Telugu remake of Tamil-Hindi bilingual ‘Saala Khadoos’ might have surprised many but interestingly, it was the film’s leading man Venkatesh’s choice to have her on board the project.

When director Sudha Kongara was looking for an actress to reprise Ritika (for the Telugu version) in the role of a rustic fisher woman, it was Venky who suggested Ritika’s name.

“When we are looking out for an actress to step into the shoes of Ritika, I felt having her on board would be the best thing. I believe she will bring authenticity to the role since she is a trained boxed and had nailed the part in the original,” said Venkatesh. The ‘Babu Bangaram’ actor also said that the script is being tweaked to suit Telugu nativity.

“The script is being refined constantly and there might be a few minor changes for greater recall and connect,” added the veteran who will be seen as a raging disgraced ex-boxer who picks up Ritika for training into championship. The as-yet-untitled film will flag-off in October and a major part of it will be shot in Visakhapatnam.