Padmapriya is in awe of Saif Ali Khan

Padmapriya Janakiraman has worked in more than 30 films in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Bengali, and even Hindi. Her last outing in Bollywood was in Chandan Arora’s 2009 flick, Striker.

Now, the actress is back to Hindi cinema, playing Saif Ali Khan’s wife in Airlift director Raja Krishna Menon’s Chef. The director has remade Jon Favreu’s Chef, where Saif reprises Favreu’s role, while Padmapriya plays Sofia Vergara’s role.

Padma loved the whole set-up of Chef. “I can’t help gushing over the infectious and challenging energy Raja and his crew bring to the table. So difficult for me as an actor to match up to the perfection that was created on the set,” she smiles.

Most of all, Padmapriya confesses she was awed by Saif’s presence. “This is the first ever film in my acting career, where I was acting opposite an actor who I was actually star-struck about. So, throughout the film, and even now when the shooting is over, I do feel very spaced-out being around him.”

She adds, “Thanks to a wonderful script, Saif’s elegant patience and intense work space, there were definite moments that both of us shared which were powerful. And I can’t wait to witness them on the big screen.”