Y agavarayinum Naa Kaakkahas been up for release for a while now.
We released an extended trailer in October, when we hadn’t finished shooting. So, it was natural for people to conclude that the film was ready. Now, it’s complete, and set for release soon.
For your previous filmsMirugamandAravaan, you underwent rigorous exercise regimens to look different. Any experiments for this?
I didn’t have to look different to play Saga (short for Satish Ganapathy). But that was the challenge — to play myself. The story is based on an incident that happened to my brother’s friends on New Year’s Eve. Four friends clash with a man at a restaurant without realising his clout. It’s a realistic film where there is no hero or villain. The reactions of both parties are justified.
The film marks the debut of your brother, director Sathya Prabhas Pinisetty, and is produced by your father, Ravi Raja Pinisetty. It must have all been very comfortable for you.
Actually, no. I don’t like to have too many close ones around at work. I also got none of the advantages an actor would presumably get when working with family. For instance, during one of the scenes, I accidentally ended up with a deep cut in my left palm. The next scene to be shot required the villain to stomp it. I assumed that a dupe would be used. My brother, however, asked me to remove the plaster around my palm, and commented that the wound didn’t seem deep enough to warrant a dupe.
Were you offended?
Not at all. Mainly because it was my brother. If it were another director, I might have been. I made a vow then that I’d treat my future directors with the same respect I gave my brother. It was a lesson.
How did your brother end up as a director, while you became an actor? Both of you, after all, look pretty similar.
He looks better, I think. In fact, when we were young, our relatives would say, “ Periya paiyan hero madhiri irukaan (elder brother looks like a hero).” He never took those compliments seriously though. In any case, my father kept us away from the world of films and wanted us to get a good education. I’m happy being an actor — I need to look good, I get paid well and I walk away with the fame. A director’s job is quite stressful.
Everything looked rosy when you were doing Vasanthabalan’sAravaan(2012). Since then, there’s been a lull.
The world of films is fickle. Fame is fleeting. I just want to do films that satisfy my appetite as an actor. The rest is not in my hands.
You sound saintly.
I’ll tell you why. In 1996, after the success of Pedarayudu , the director, my father Ravi, was a popular man in Andhra Pradesh. We were on a train to Rajahmundry for the release of his next, Aranyam , and at every station he was mobbed. A day later, we were returning; Aranyam had bombed. This time, not a single person cared to say hello. My father said this is how cinema is. Do you see why I sounded saintly?
Considering your films generally fare well — even better than in Tamil, if I can say that — in Andhra, it must be tempting for you to do out-and-out Telugu films.
You’re right. Vaishali (dubbed version of Eeram ) did well. Mrugam (dubbed version of Mirugam ) did better there. However, I grew up in Chennai, and want to be active here. There is an elegant solution to this problem — bilinguals. They ensure that I remain active in both industries.
What has kept you busy in the last two years?
I’ve listened to over 100 scripts by upcoming directors. Each narration lasted at least two hours.
How do you know what would work?
Earlier, I would go by the narration and if I liked the story, I’d say yes. But, I realised that there were directors who had no idea how to visualise their stories on screen. So, these days, during narrations, I interrupt occasionally and ask them to explain how they plan to shoot the scene — where they’d use a crane, where they’d use a low angle... That really helps isolate filmmakers from writers.
You can probably afford to take these lengthy breaks, as you don’t have to fend for everyday survival.
It’s a blessing. I know plenty of talented actors who make bad decisions because they have mouths to feed. I’m just lucky that I can wait for a good story, a good director, even if it takes two years as it has now. In that sense, I’m desperate for Yagavarayinum to do well.
