A Latin American screen presence: Prabhakar Sharan on debut 'Enredados, La Confusion'

Actor Prabhakar Sharan makes India proud with his debut Spanish film that won accolades at Jharkhand film festival.
Enredados, La Confusion
Enredados, La Confusion

Chance favours only the prepared mind, and Costa Rican film actor, writer and director Prabhakar Sharan is no exception. Bihar-born Sharan, who won the Best Actor Award for his debut in Spanish film Enredados, La Confusion at the inaugural edition of Jharkhand International Film Festival Awards (JIFFA) in Ranchi, landed in the Central American nation almost by chance to pursue his studies at the Universidad Panamericana in 2000.

The film, directed and written by Sharan, also won the Best Film Award for Teresa Rodriguez Cerdas and Best Cinematography Award for Suresh Beesaveni at JIFFA. “Getting my first movie selected for JIFFA and winning three awards means a lot to me. The best takeaway was receiving the honour from none other than the Consulate General of Costa Rica, Eduardo Salgado,” says the 38-year-old.

With little or no exposure to Spanish in his growing up years, this achievement is a big feat for Sharan and a befitting tribute to his rustic roots. “After completing school, I moved to Haryana for studies where I met Rakesh Rathee who introduced me to businessmen Pawan Murarka, the then Honorary Consul for Costa Rica. When I expressed my desire to move to Costa Rica, he warned me that living in a foreign country uninhabited by Indians will be easier said than done,” he reminisces. “But I was keen and told him that I would make India and Indians known there.”

He did it with perseverance, and today he is an actor, entrepreneur, and a name to reckon with in the Spanish-speaking nation.

“In my heart of hearts, I always wanted to be an actor and scorch the silver screen,” he says. While in India, he had tried his luck in Hindi films, but in vain. Looking back at his arduous journey, the actor says, “I had to work hard to make both ends meet. I used to attend classes during the day, and then slog in the jungle cutting wood to earn some extra bucks that I invested into buying Hindi films.

I used to burn midnight oil in subtitling them into Spanish with the help of an acclaimed Latin American film critic, William Venegas.” The subtitled Hindi films didn’t fare well there, but Sharan stayed put. He ventured into business and in between, attended acting classes to hone his talent. “I always wanted to do a Bollywood-style film. I owe a lot to Teresa for pitching in money and filmmaker Ashish R Mohan for his invaluable inputs,” he says.

The other project that has kept him on his toes is a film on human trafficking, Borders Without Life. “The film is being supported by five countries and our respective ambassadors from India in Colombia, Guatemala, Panama, Mexico, and the US. It is going to tear into the real facts of human trafficking which has become a trillion-dollar business,” he says.

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