She said speaking to audiences in their language is her way of showing respect to them.
Rashmika Mandanna, who has established herself across Telugu, Kannada, Tamil and Hindi cinema, has opened up about the trolling she faces over her accent, pronunciation and command of different languages.
In an interview with Hindustan Times, Rashmika addressed the criticism and explained how her multilingual career evolved. She said her journey across different film industries was never planned, but happened organically as opportunities came her way.
Rashmika pointed out that her mother tongue is Kodava Takk and that there is no major film industry producing movies in the language. Because of this, she had to work in other languages after entering the film industry.
“I am a Kodava and speak Kodava Takk, we don't have an industry for my mother tongue. So language has never been a barrier in my career. I treat all languages as my own,” Rashmika said in the interview.
The actress also addressed comments about her accent and pronunciation. She said she does not consider herself an expert in any particular language and described herself as a “Jack of all trades, master of none.”
Rashmika explained that being able to communicate with audiences in their respective languages is more important to her than achieving perfect fluency or pronunciation. She said speaking to audiences in their language is her way of showing respect to them.
Her entry into different industries also happened through audience support, according to Rashmika. She said her fans initially encouraged her to do a Telugu film, and similar opportunities eventually led her towards Hindi cinema as well.
Rashmika has faced criticism on social media for her accent and dialogue delivery in different languages. However, she said she does not pay much attention to what she described as “unnecessary chatter” and prefers to concentrate on her work.
“As an actor, my job is to tell good stories on set and come back,” she said, adding that she focuses on giving her best performance rather than responding to every criticism.
Rashmika made her Kannada debut with Kirik Party in 2016, followed by her Telugu debut with Chalo, Tamil debut with Sulthan and Hindi debut with Goodbye. She has since continued to work across multiple Indian film industries.
For Rashmika, her multilingual journey is less about mastering one particular language and more about connecting with audiences across different regions. Despite the continued scrutiny over her accent and pronunciation, the actress said she would rather focus on her performances.
