Actor Pooja Hegde has issued a statement after her comment on the South film industry got some backlash on social media. Pooja, in a recent interview, had talked about how ‘South has an obsession with navels and midriffs’. “Things I said in a recent interview are being misinterpreted. The things I said can be twisted but the love I have for Tollywood can’t be. Telugu film industry has always been vital for me. This is even known to my fans who love my movies. I always say I will never give in to misunderstandings but I will still reinstate, I will forever be indebted to the Telugu film industry,” she wrote, as per a Mid-Day report.
Pooja made her comment during an interview with Film Companion’s Anupama Chopra. She was talking about her film Ala Vaikuntapuramlo, in which her co-star Allu Arjun stares at her legs. Pooja said that she would much rather that men stared at her legs than her navel or waist. “I spoke about this in my press things. I said that South has an obsession with navels and midriffs. I said I would rather have a guy look at my legs than my midriff. Somebody asked me ‘Is it vulgar?’ I said I think legs are hot but objectifying the legs, maybe not. Which is what we added in a couple of scene but a lot of people maybe did not notice that,” she said in the interview. On the work front, Pooja Hegde will be seen as the female lead in the upcoming film called Radhe Shyam. This film will feature the Baahubali actor Prabhas as the lead. The much awaited romance saga starring Prabhas and Pooja Hegde is helmed by ace director Radha Krishna Kumar.