One time wonders of Tollywood - TeluguPeople.com News

They were once the leading ladies, but with luck not working in their favor they settled down to playing the second lead. But not to be disheartened, these actresses are confident that they will soon get a major break that will catapult them to the top league.

Saloni Aswani, who made her T-town debut with Dhana 51, followed it up with Oka Oorilo. She was the most sought after actress in those days. However, with both the films being commercial failures, Saloni had to restrict herself to a couple of cameos in films opposite Nagarjuna and Ram Charan.

Though her performances won her critical acclaim, it was only with Maryada Ramanna that Saloni got the break she was waiting for. The movie became a big hit and garnered a reputation as a natural performer for Saloni.

Her performance in Bodyguard was equally impressive and fetched her award for the Best Actress in a supporting role. Currently the actress is playing the second lead in Race Gurram opposite Allu Arjun. The film is set for Pongal 2014 release.

Saloni has pinned a lot of hopes on the film and is hoping that her performance would be liked by the audience. She is also confident that it will open more doors for her.

'I'm doing Allu Arjun's film and looking forward to the release. I cannot reveal much about my role. All I can say is that my character has a lot of scope for performance.'

A former model, Shazahn Padamsee made her Tollywood debut with Orange opposite Ram Charan. The actress created an impact and won accolades for her brief portrayal as Rooba in the film.

But the film didn't fetch her appropriate roles and incidentally the actress took time to make a comeback to the Telugu industry as she was more focused on Bollywood.

Now, the 25-year old actress has been roped in to play one of the leading ladies alongside Ram in the film Masala which is the remake of Bollywood super hit Bol Bachchan.

The film also has Venkatesh and Anjali in the lead roles. Directed by K Vijayabhaskar, the film is scheduled for release in October. The actress is confident that this film will give her a permanent foot-hold in Tollywood.

Another girl who is trying her luck after some debacles is Pranitha Subash. She made her first appearance in Tollywood with Baava opposite Siddharth. She was appreciated for her portrayal as a village belle Varalakshmi. The film tanked at the box-office and Pranitha disappeared from the limelight for a while.

The actress is now all set to return to the Tollywood with Attarintiki Daaredi wherein she plays the second lead opposite Pawan Kalyan. Directed by Trivikram Srinivas, the film is slated for October 9 release.

The success of this film will be an acid test for Pranitha as she is eyeing a full-fledged career in Tollywood.