BANGALORE: Actor Dhananjay, who made a successful debut with Director’s Special, has been in demand in Sandalwood. He has now signed up for Preetham Gubbi’s next titled Boxer, in which he essays the character of a kickboxer. From breaking software codes to breaking bones, it has been an eventful journey for the actor, who quit a plush job with Infosys to follow his passion.
“I play an introvert in Boxer. I am currently getting trained in kickboxing and am working towards getting an athletic look. I am trying to match the director’s visual of the character,” says Dhananjay.
According to the actor, the film, which is produced by Jayanna and Bogendra, came to him because of the producer. “The best treatment I got as an actor is from Jayanna when he chose me for this role. As for associating with Preetham, I have watched all his films and observed that he is someone who dealt with light-hearted subjects. He was also the script writer of Mungaru Male. I really liked the story of Boxer, which is again written by him and is an action-based film with a love angle,” he says.
Talking about the films that he has signed, he says his calendar is full till February 2015. “Though Director’s Special did not have much of commercial value, I was offered a lot of films just before and after its release. Arjun chose me for Raate after seeing my photo on V Harikrishna’s reference. I also got Om Prakash’s project and Vijayaditya before Director’s Special hit the theatres. One good thing about these projects is that they give me a chance to essay different characters,” he says.
Dhananjay will start shooting for Boxer in August. “I am yet to reach a stage where I can wait for a release and then sign my next project. I have to keep continuing with more work as I don’t have a backup. I am putting in my honest efforts,” he says.
Though he has confirmed the projects of directors Om Prakash and Guruprasad, they are yet to go on floors.
“The bound scripts are not ready yet. I have also signed up for Badmaash with Akash Srivastav. I look forward to working on Guru’s project whenever he is ready. Right now, I have completed Raate and am shooting for Vijayaditya. Everything else will happen only after Boxer,” he says.
Talking about the attention he is receiving from filmmakers, Dhanajay says, “It is not good to pat my own back by saying this, but director Soori had once told me after watching Director’s Special that directors like to write scripts after seeing me, which is a good thing. Coming from a director like him, it was a great compliment. I think it is my gift. Filmmakers feel that my face, in certain angles, suit their characters.”
Boxer, directed by Preetham Gubbi, will have S Krishna as the cinematographer. V Harikrishna will be scoring the music and Ravi Varma will be the stunt choreographer. “At present, my job is go to the gym, learn kickboxing, watch a lot of movies based on boxing and get into action soon,” he says.