The year 2021 is ending on a good note for music composer-turned-actor GV Prakash. While Bachelor hits screens this Friday, his Jail releases next week.
For a musician who is an accidental actor — debuting in a film titled Darling in 2015 — Prakash has travelled quite a distance. He is more serious about the craft now, and is looking to learn.
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“After my debut film, I did a string of projects that focussed on comedy. Bala’s Naachiyar (2018) broke that mould — in terms of body language, look and acting techniques. Sarvam Thala Mayam and Sivappu Manjal Pachai followed that, and I was lucky to get opportunities to work in good roles.”
Bachelor and Jail are worthy follow-ups to a string of serious subjects that he has been taking of late. “I think I’m getting better with every film, be it acting or music composition. That’s the aim with every project I take up.”
With Bachelor , he is trying to provide a peek into a toxic relationship between a boy and a girl. The phrase, “Lust has become more dominant than love,” shows up in the trailer of this film, directed by Sathish Selvakumar and produced by G Dillibabu. “This is not a jaali (happy) film. It is a serious subject and a study on a man-woman relationship and how it breaks down into a messy affair. It will be a modern take on toxic relationships,” says Prakash, whose co-star in the film is Divyabharathi.
He plays a character called Darling in the film that also stars Munishkanth and Bhagavathi Perumal, and Prakash says that it was very different to who he is in real life. “I’m very thuru thuru (restless) by nature, but the character I play is very laidback and doesn’t bat an eyelid even if the world around him collapses. If you ask him a question, he takes around 30 seconds to answer. This presented a lot of opportunities as an actor; I learnt how to use my eyes, and how to make ‘stays’ while performing. Jail , on the other hand, has me as Karuna, who is a pickpocket and a cunning thief.”
- It was a chance discussion with a friend that lay the seeds of Bachelor in debutant director Sathish Selvakumar’s mind. “I created a story around something I heard, and narrated it to only one person (G Dillibabu), who agreed to produce the film,” says Sathish, who hails from Coimbatore and has assisted filmmakers like Sasi and RNR Manohar previously, “I went in to meet the producer with zero expectations but I have been really lucky that things fell in place.”
- Sathish, who is currently in talks to finalise his second project, is a huge fan of Mexican filmmaker Alejandro Inarritu, whose notable films include Amores Perros and Babel.
Looking back, Prakash considers Naachiyar his coming-of-age film and one of the biggest highlights in his career. “Till then, I did not believe I had it in me to physically change myself for a role. Director Bala, who I consider one of my gurus, believed that I could do it. Similarly, Baba Bhaskar (choreographer-director) made me dance when I thought I didn’t have it in me,” says Prakash, whose recent favourites include watching performances of Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen and checking out acting masterclasses from Natalie Portman.
Though acting is on top of his mind now, music is not too far away either. GV Prakash’s recent outings as a composer includes biggies like Soorarai Potru and Thalaivi ; he has other exciting projects lined up. So, what’s his secret to cracking a hit tune? “The simpler a tune is, the further it will reach. This doesn’t mean usual; there is a thin line between usual and simple, and as composers, we need to reach that, and hope audiences like that.”
Up next, he promises that he has a “stunning line-up of projects”. Apart from his two current releases, Prakash also has Selfie and Idimuzhakkam coming up. “To build this bank, I needed time to refine and evaluate myself, just like how I had to when I went through a low as a composer. After my debut musical outing Veyyil , I had a string of lows, before Aayirathil Oruvan picked things up. Subsequently, there was a lull before Aadukalam came along. It has been a graph, with ups and downs. But all that matters, at the end of the day, is your willingness to learn.”