CHENNAI:S P Balasubrahmanyam’s phone still rings everyday with requests from music directors. With his voice mellifluos as ever, he says his songs will continue to work their charm as long as he is delivering 85 per cent of what he used to, while at the peak of his career. “The day it slips to 84 per cent, I will call a press meet and announce that SP Balasubrahmanyam will stop singing in movies,” he says.
The legendary singer made the declaration not during a recording, but on the movie sets of his son SPB Charan’s production Moone Moonu Vaarthai, in which he plays a lead role. In the movie, he will be sharing screen space with actor Lakshmi, with whom he has performed in almost a dozen movies.
City Express presents their experiences in the movie, their views about each other, and their journey so far...
You say you’ve acted in almost a dozen movies so far. Has this movie made you perform any differently?
SPB: Honestly, we did not have to act. We were our natural selves and it just clicked.
Lakshmi: It was a paid vacation, there was nothing much to work for. We were very comfortable acting with each other.
How is this film different from the ones you’ve acted in so far?
SPB and Lakshmi: It is different, not something out of the world, but definitely a path not tread upon till now.
Lakshmi: It is beyond the formula-driven, boy-falls-in-love-with-girl -dances-with-lungi-between-teeth kind of movies. It is definitely pleasant, the audience will feel like they’re having warm popcorn in December.
Describe your experience acting together, since the initial days
SPB: Lakshmi is immensely talented. I am not so accomplished, but we some how complement each other. It just clicks.
Lakshmi: Like I said, we don’t have to act in roles together. It just comes to us and we completely get involved in the scenes. In one of the scenes in a movie we acted together — Mithunam — we had to enact a heated argument. We were so involved that I actually poured some water on him! It wasn’t part of the script. That scene was retained.
Besides acting, you sang for a debutant music director, in the movie. How was the experience compared to working with established composers? (to SPB)
Each music director is different. Karthikeya Moorthy is talented, no doubt. His re-recordings are impressive. His knowledge of western and classical music is evident.
Having been in the industry all these years, have you been approached with repetitive roles? Where do you draw the line? (to Lakshmi)
Yes, there have been offers with repetitions. When we perform in a movie and it clicks, we are asked to do the same kind of roles. I mostly try and avoid them. Talking about the roles I don’t want, they’re usually ones that don’t suit my age and style. For instance, I can’t do the flashback scenes with me as my younger self, sporting a retro style.
For how many more years do you see yourself performing?
SPB: I have sung close to 40,000 songs and I am proud and blessed to say I am still in demand, singing a song everyday. My performance is 95 per cent of what it used to be. When it falls below 85 per cent, I will call it a day.
Lakshmi: I act in all languages. The day I am not able to deliver dialogues well in all languages with the same ease, I will retire.