Pooja Hegde to replace Anushka Shetty in Gunasekhar's highly-anticipated 'Shakuntalam'?

Prolific Tollywood filmmaker Gunasekhar's Shakuntalam has become the talk of the town after several reports regarding the leading lady of the film have been doing the rounds. Earlier, it was said that Anushka Shetty, who has already worked with the director in 2015's Rudramadevi, will be roped in to play the titular role in the love story. However, speculations are rife that the makers are keen on offering the project to the Mohenjo Daro actor Pooja Hegde.

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Pooja to replace Anushka in Gunasekhar's Shakuntalam?

Leading director Gunasekhar recently introduced his daughter Neelima Guna as the producer to announce his upcoming film titled Shakuntalam. The Tollywood filmmaker also announced that the highly-anticipated love story is going to be a pan-India film. While the music of the film will be composed by Mani Sharma, it will be written and directed by the National Award-winning director himself. 

However, ever since Gunasekhar announced Shakuntalam, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding the leading lady who will play the titular role in the upcoming film. It was earlier speculated that Anushka Shetty will be roped in to play the role. Now, if the grapevines are to be believed, the Housefull 4 actor Pooja Hegde has become one of the final choices of the makers to play the much-talked-about role in the film.

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Pooja is currently shooting for her upcoming film Radheshyam in Italy. Thus, updates about her role in the film will only be available once she returns and attends a meeting with the filmmaker regarding the project. It has also been reported that Samantha Akkineni is also one of the choices of the makers for the titular role in Shakuntalam. However, these are mere speculations as neither of them have officially announced or confirmed the news, as of yet. 

Meanwhile, Gunasekhar recently released the motion poster of the upcoming film, which has increased the excitement among fans regarding its release. The film will be bankrolled by the director's daughter Nileema Guna under the banner Gunaa Teamworks. The makers have defined the film as, "The love that was forgotten... An unforgettable tale of love that remains."

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Watch the motion poster of 'Shakuntalam' below:

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(Image credit: Pooja Hegde and Anushka Shetty Instagram)