Hegde said that it was her deliberate attempt to step away from the hindi belt. "It was my conscious decision which was made even before the release of 'Housefull 4.' I had decided not to films just for the sake of it." pooja made her debut in bollywood with 'Mohenjo Daro,' and it was regarded as a dud. The actress discussed it and added, "Honestly saying, I come from a very academically driven family, I have no family connection in films... and when your first film doesn't do well, it's very difficult to get another film.
Having said that, I got films after 'Mohenjo Daro,' but it wasn't something that I loved or was excited about." Hegde continued, "At the same time, South films were coming, and they were so interesting... I was excited about it. So, I thought that the South was giving me so much respect, so much love, thus I decided to concentrate there."