In school, Gayathri Gupta was that girl who would attempt anything and everything creative. A big fan of Alisha Chinai back then, she had immense fondness for writing songs; she had even considered it for a career option, despite firm instructions from an orthodox family to focus on academics.
When she set upon a career in films in 2006 sans adequate family support, she came prepared to learn life the hard way.
The actor who rose to fame with her short films (notably Pelliki Mundu ), plays the female lead in Sampoornesh Babu’s Kobbari Matta . She is also an efficient singer, lyricist, stylist, and even went onto direct her recent music video ‘ Ninnu Chusthu Unna ’ which she sang, wrote and also enacted.
No wonder, she’s surrounded by friends who constantly urge her to do only one thing at a time. But Gayathri is quick to respond that multitasking is her strength.
Ninnu Chusthu Unna was ideated long ago when she and her friend, composer Kamran, spotted a tune that would do well as a melody video. But the video took a backseat because of her increasing short film assignments and the need to establish her film career. It was only four months ago that she found time to shoot the video.
On the theme, she says, “There’s a certain melancholy in it. The theme was to explore the situation of a woman dealing with a breakup; of how after some lovely moments, her world feels shattered.”
She operated like a one-man army during the making of the video. She admits there was a financial crunch and that her passion to sing and dabble with many production aspects kept her motivated.
She adds, “The camera man brought his own equipment, friends chipped in with costumes and financial resources. We shot it at a few resorts and friends’ houses.”
The video also served as a self-check and helped her understand her limitations as an artiste. “The struggle is your own. You have independence, you can learn so much,” she shares. Her long-cherished dream is to sing for herself in films. For now, she’s happy playing the waiting game.
