After making her acting debut with Kollywood’s super-hero flick Mugamoodi (2012), she went on to star in a couple of mediocre Telugu dramas, Oka Laila Kosam (2014) and Mukunda (2014). She was also part of Hrithik Roshan’s period-drama film Mohenjo Daro (2016), which bombed at the box office.

Hegde achieved her first breakthrough with Harish Shankar’s masala action film DJ: Duvvada Jagannadham (2017). She was then featured in the popular dance musical ‘Jigelu Rani’ in Rangastalam (2018). Her decision to feature in an ‘Item’ number at a very early stage of her career can be decoded as having a motive to carry on the ‘Glam Doll’ image she achieved with DJ (2017). One must say the Tulu actor has succeeded in doing so, as the song received applause from moviegoers and she was flooded with numerous offers.

This was followed by a series of hits, such as Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018), Maharshi (2019), Gaddalakonda Ganesh (2019), and Housefull 4 (2019). However, her biggest blockbuster was the Sankranthi release, Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (2020). Directed by ‘Guruji’ Trivikram Srinivas, the film was the highest-grossing Telugu film of all time (non-Bahubali). Her next release, Most Eligible Bachelor (2021), was also well-received by the audience.

What occurred thereafter is something the actor will find hard to forget. She faced back-to-back setbacks with the Prabhas-starrer Radhe Shyam (2022), ‘Thalapathy’ Vijay’s Beast (2022), and Chiranjeevi Ram Charan multi-starrer Acharya (2022) & Cirkus (2022). All these flicks were panned by critics and ended up being mammoth box-office disasters. Her next theatrical release, Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan (2023), a remake of Ajith’s Veeram (2014), starring Salman Khan, is considered one of the worst films ever made.

Amid this disastrous phase, she was signed in to play the female lead in the Mahesh Babu-Trivikram film, a film that could have brought her back on track. To her misery, she was replaced by Sreeleela for reasons unstated. Hegde was also paired opposite Vijay Devarakonda in Puri Jagannath’s JGM, but the project was shelved following the result of Liger (2022).

Harish Shankar, who played a crucial role in her career with DJ and Gaddalakonda Ganesh, had planned to cast her in Ustaad Bhagat Singh and Mr. Bachchan. However, she got replaced in both films. Sai Dharam Tej and Sampath Nandi’s film got shelved due to budget constraints, and she signed on as the main lead in that film

It should be noted that, despite scrolling numerous hits, she was never acclaimed for her acting prowess. In fact, critics never considered her a good actor but a mere eye candy. As of now, Hegde’s future looks completely bleak, and only a miracle can save her from fading out.