Actor Sobhita Dhulipala has opened up about her experience growing up in the Telugu states, saying the environment felt judgemental towards people, especially women, who wanted to pursue unconventional paths. Her comments came after she agreed with an Instagram influencer’s claim that Telugu people often fail to support others from their own community.
An Instagram influencer named Ahalya from Hyderabad recently shared a video questioning why Telugu people are often critical rather than supportive when someone from the community starts something new. She said, “The only enemy of a Telugu person is another Telugu person. No, seriously, hear me out, and it’s honestly quite sad.”
Ahalya went on to point out that while Telugu people are vocal about cinema, culture and community pride, they do not always extend the same support to someone starting a business, opening a restaurant or trying something different.
Sobhita reacted to the post with a ‘100’ emoji and shared her own experience. The actor revealed that she left home for Mumbai at the age of 16, saying she felt the environment around her was not welcoming towards people who wanted to take risks.
“I packed my bags and left for Mumbai at age 16, with no guarantee of making it but I took my chance cus it was clear to me that the environment here felt deeply resistant and judgemental of anyone who dares to dream, especially if you’re an outsider to whichever field you want to enter. Double dose if you’re a woman (sic),” she wrote.
She added that she hopes the situation has changed over the years. “Well, this was a while ago, and I do hope things are different now. Here’s wishing everyone in our community can grow wings (and a spine),” Sobhita said.
Sobhita was born in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh. She moved to Mumbai at 16 and later studied corporate law before representing India at Miss Earth 2013. She entered Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016), which also starred Vicky Kaushal and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Over the years, she has appeared in films in different languages such as Goodachari (2018), Moothon (2019) and Ponniyin Selvan: Part I (2022), while also making her mark on streaming with Made in Heaven (2019) and The Night Manager (2023).