When you see him on screen, you don’t think he is ‘acting’ — he does it so flawlessly, making you deeply resonate with the character. Off screen, he is possibly the most honest and down-to-earth artiste you’ll meet. A ‘character’ actor, Priyadarshi Pulikonda, whom fans affectionately call Darshi, amazes us with his comedy and romantic roles. Now, he is all set to blow us away with a courtroom drama, Court - State vs A Nobody. In a candid conversation with TNIE team during Hyderabad Dialogues, the actor speaks about his upcoming film, creative process, journey, and more.
What can the audience expect from Court - State vs A Nobody?
The movie is about how a teenage boy is wrongfully accused in a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) case and how a passionate lawyer represents him and fights against corruption in the justice system.
Nani is the producer of the film. How was your experience working with him?
Nani is easy to work with and has a thorough understanding of cinema and how scripts work. He works with filmmakers who come up with original ideas.
In this era, there are many filmmakers but a lot of them don’t know what to say through their art, which is a problem. Nani is particularly concerned about what a particular artiste or a filmmaker is trying to convey through his or her movie. When we (Darshi and debut director Ram Jagadeesh) actually pitched this idea to Nani, he was very excited. One year ago, when we were doing Hi Nanna together, we discussed how, for instance, Jai Bheem from Tamil Nadu not only made it to the headlines but also stirred a discussion within the public, cutting across age barriers. We wanted to do something similar.
Luckily, I was in touch with Jagadeesh, who had this idea on the POCSO case; one of his friends had a similar experience, so we wanted to bring this story to life.
You have chosen a contrarian film. Can you tell us about it?
The POCSO Act basically works towards protecting children’s rights. But there are also a lot of people who misuse it. I have spoken to many friends in the lawyer community and learned about the misuse of 498A and other such laws. We thought that through this film, the audience will definitely understand that POCSO helps the legal system convict a criminal who has violated a child’s privacy, which includes sexually assaulting them. But we wanted to also highlight how people are wrongly accused. I would like to give you more details but I am holding myself back. Please watch the film!
You are known for your comic roles, so how difficult was it to do a serious role in this film?
Creating humour on screen is way more difficult than this. These days, I hardly laugh when comedians crack jokes but find myself laughing at news channels. What constitutes humour is something I really don’t understand; I rely on writers who have written movies like Save the Tigers, Pelli Choopulu, Jathi Ratnalu.
You are a natural actor. Could you explain that part of your personality?
Half of it comes from the language that I speak. I would rather call myself an actor with better timing than a comedian.
You have done movies where you use the Telangana Mandalikam (dialect). You were very good at it, so why didn’t you do many full-length movies with this dialect?
I have done a couple of them, such as Balagam, Mallesham, and Save the Tigers. I am doing another one called Mitra Mandali, which is completely rooted in Telangana’s characters. I want to do movies like these so I can represent them globally. I am not going to stick only to Mandalikam because after doing films in different areas, I can’t understand how people in Hyderabad speak and how people in Nizamabad speak. I only know the Warangal dialect because it is clear enough for me. I am unable to figure out which dialect I have to speak in, which even a lot of my friends also complained about, saying, “Nuvu emi matladutunav ra, Nizamabad lo unnava leka Hyderabad lo unnava?” (What language are you speaking — are you in Nizamabad or Hyderabad?) I am yet to figure out this identity crisis I have with my own language.
Your dialogue ‘Na saavu nenu sasta neeku enduku’ in Pelli Choopulu became famous. Can you tell us how this dialogue came up in the first place?
As a society, we don’t invest much in the humanities. There aren’t as many scholarships for people who want to pursue humanities in our country. Also, people will always ask ‘Em chestunnaru?’ and ‘What next after engineering?’ We are basically a homogenised society. Tharun Bhaskar was vexed with all these things and that is how the dialogue came up.
When you joined HCU, what was your idea of life — was cinema at the back of your mind?
Convincing an orthodox middle class family that you want to join the film industry is like waging a war. It is purely an adventure and there is uncertainty as well. My father struggled very much; he wanted to be a poet and do plays and writing. When he was studying in Osmania University, he had friends who participated in theatre. They ended up as academicians in theatre and got a far better salary than a theatre artiste. So, he knew how tough this was going to be; here was this perception or belief that the film industry was being controlled by four to five families and people from certain castes were seen all the time. All of these narratives and beliefs existed 15 to 20 years ago but thanks to the decentralisation of media and the advent of digital films, things have changed. I was inspired by that. I tried convincing my dad by talking about cinematographer Senthil Kumar but he never bought that narrative. I navigated life on my own and joined HCU, experiencing true freedom there. It was like finding a purpose.
What made me enter HCU were these cameras that they had displayed on their brochures. So I thought I should go there and learn filmmaking. Little did I know that I was not just entering the world of cinema but also something far beyond that, as communication studies borrows a lot from anthropology too. This helps me understand the world around me much better. The 5Ws and 1H I learned there, I translated them into my characters as well.
When was the first time you thought of getting into films?
When I was around seven years old, the idea struck me — I don’t know why it got into me but I knew I had to be in films. I was a very curious child; I wanted to understand how this whole thing filmmaking worked and what was behind the TV. In fact, I would unscrew the TV in my house to see what was inside, wondering what was there inside!
People used to laugh when someone would talk in Telangana dialect. Now, it is the mainstream. What brought about this paradigm shift?
The Telangana movement was rather active during 2012-2014, resulting in people suddenly embracing the dialects in the region. Once a separate state was carved out, the voices became stronger too. Everyone started getting a platform and technology rapidly evolved too, igniting a digital film revolution. Around 2012 or 2013, people started making films with 5D cameras and there was also the boom of the internet, which only strengthened the movement more.
Cinema also jumped onto the bandwagon, and several actors, including me, started doing their own Telangana content. I had the first mover advantage here. When Pelli Choopulu was released, theatres in Telangana were filled with laughter. I recall Vijay Deverakonda and I discussing how people would respond to Pelli Choopulu in Vijayawada. The biggest challenge was being accepted and co-existing in an industry dominated by one or two dialects. In Vijayawada, we were waiting for people to come and watch. People came, watched, and laughed too — we were surprised by the validation we got.
What are your hobbies?
I think travelling is one, and I love driving. I read sometimes, watch films, and see a lot of travelling vlogs too. Now, I am trying my hand at fixing cars!
Can you tell us about the special places you have been to while travelling?
I am always debating between places with mountains and places with seas. Recently, I went to Yosemite National Park in California. Then I thought of the beach, so I went to Goa. Then I was bored of travelling and returned to Chandanagar. (laughs) I become very lalchi when it comes to all of this. I now want to travel to the Northeast.
You are wearing a nice t-shirt with the caption ‘Hope never dies, believe in miracles’. Would you like to tell us about any miracle that happened in your life?
Many miracles have happened — the fact that I have become an actor is one. But it was also my hard work which helped. But yes, ‘Nenu joke veste navutunaru’. (laughs) When people laugh at my jokes, that is a miracle. I think the film itself is a miracle. Let us call Pelli Choopulu, Balagam, and the very fact that cinema allows me to connect to humanity as miracles.
If Darshi was not an actor, what would he be?
I would be a filmmaker and slowly end up being an actor!
Watch the full video on YouTube/TheNewIndianExpress