For an iconic superstar with a large fan-following, Akkineni Nagarjuna is one of the most relaxed personalities in the Telugu film industry. Smart, humble and hilarious -- the actor draws you in with his charm, grips you with his sensibility and leaves you in splits with his spontaneous sense of humour -- both on and off-screen. The actor shows admirable humility, grace and practicality as he chats with Express about films, family and more.
On Soggade Chinni Nayana
With no film in 2015, the actor has had a relatively quiet year, even though his show Meelo Evaru Koteeswarudu continues to do very well. Nag, as he is fondly called, says his upcoming film Soggade Chinni Naayana will more than make up for his absence from films 2015.
"It's a complete family entertainer and is packed with humour. It also has a bit of supernatural element in it. However, it's not too heavy or deep -- but it's there to keep the film interesting," shares Nagarjuna.
This will be the actor's first full-fledged film after 2014 blockbuster Manam. Describing his role in it, he says, "The role I play is interesting and has a lot of variations. I'm playing a dual role -- that of a father and son. The
father is actually a soul, ie, he's not alive in the physical form. You can call it a ghost or a soul or whatever you want," the actor shrugs.
Despite playing both a father and a son, Nag did not have to go through the trouble of undergoing significant cosmetic change to look a different age. According to the actor, both characters are of pretty much the same age-group.
"The father dies before the son was born and he comes to down looking to help the boy. In the film, we both look the same age. Because as soon as the father passes away, the son is born the next day," he reveals.
Inspite of this, both characters are of completely contrasting nature and Nag points out that he didn't find it too challenging, but says he relished it instead.
"Both are two very different
characters. The father is a flamboyant, energetic and aggressive. He is a dashing personality who is romantic and likes to flirt, and whenever he is around, there's lots of fun. The son, on the other hand, is very innocent and shy. He is a geek kind of a guy who is completely involved with his work. That's all he sees, he can't see the world around him past his work. Also, the father is from a village, who doesn't speak a word of English but the boy is a doctor who just returned from America."
"So essaying both characters required a lot of variations. The director (Kalyan Krishna) helped me to switch on and off. It wasn't hard but it was very enjoyable. I had a great time doing this film and in fact, it brought back memories of a film I had done long back called Hello Brother (1994)," recalls Nagarjuna.
After the debacle of Bhai in 2013, Nag had publicly expressed regret at having done such a film and said he would only do films that really appeal to him going forward, and says Soggade Chinni Nayana is part of that approach.
"It's a very conscious approach on my part. I want to entertain the families. I believe there are not many films coming these days that entertain the whole family. There aren't many films that families can go, laugh and then talk about. I want to make films about which a grandfather can talk to his grandchild. That's what I did with
Manam and I have tried to do something similar this time around as well," he observes, passionately.
Apart from essaying two contrasting characters, Nag will also be romancing two different heroines -- veteran actress Ramya Krishnan and Lavanya Tripathi.
"Ramya was very easy for me, as we had done many films together and our pair has been accepted. Lavanya was a little difficult (laughs). She's definitely a new-generation actress and yes, I tried my best to match up to her. The audience should judge if I have matched up or not," he quips, laughing.
On competition
Nagarjuna's film will be in an intense box-office clash this Sankranthi, along with NTR Jr's Nannaku Prematho and Balakrishna's Dictotor. With all three films releasing on consecutive days (Nannaku Prematho on January 13, Dictator on 14 and SCN on 15), Nagarjuna admits that he is a bit wary of his competition.
"Of course, competition is always there and one must be wary of it, only then can we be strong and level-headed. But I had planned this film about three to four months ago. It is made for the Sankranthi festival. It has a village background, and it's been a long time since such village films have come. So we made the film keeping in mind the Sankranthi festival and we were keen on releasing it at this time. Other than that, I cannot say anything, but
definitely I'm a little bit wary and tense. However, keeping the competition aside, I'm very confident about what my film is going to do..but maybe I'll have to share my success with
others," he asserts, with a laugh.