There are times when you find profundity in simple things. And in a field like cinema, small things add up to become stories of epic scale. In Sandalwood, small has been big before too, but thanks to people like Manju Mitra and Yogaraj Bhat, simple profundity still exists.
Geetha Bangle Store is a case in point. Manju Mitra’s directorial debut was shelved for lack of takers, until Yogaraj Bhat took up the distribution rights. What these two men did was not just to revive the art of simple storytelling, but also launch the career of a small screen actor, Panju.
The 10-serial-old actor is upbeat about his big screen break and he thanks actor Yogi, who backed out after being cast as the lead initially. According to the upcoming actor, the film, which will hit the screen in July, has a rural backdrop and revolves around the life of a family man, who runs his livelihood by raising silkworms and harvesting cocoons.
Panju says, “It might mislead with its title as a heroine-centric flick but it is not. The man behind establishing the bangle store is the hero. The struggle he goes through to set it up for his love is the gist of Geetha Bangle Store.”
Panju, who hails from Mandya and came to Bengaluru to complete his degree, says, “My interest in acting took me to Benaka theatre group from where I got into serials. It was Milana Prakash’s Lakumi that gave me a break first. The director’s brother praised my village boy character in the serial and recommended my name to Manju Mitra. They auditioned me and after a month confirmed my role. At that moment, I did not believe it but after I heard the script, I understood why they chose me. ” He adds that he had to be his normal self in the film. “Probably that simplicity was the advantage that got me the film,” he mentions.
And Panju got the required encouragement from none other than Yogaraj Bhat himself. “He watched the film before he took the decision to distribute it and told me that I had the potential and should accept good films,” he says.
The film also has Achyuth Rao, Bhavya and Vinay Prasad playing important characters and Giriraj, the director of Mythri, essays the role of the villain.
Unlike others, Panju is not giving up small screen yet. “I am right now working on Punar Vivaha, which is a popular serial running on Zee TV. I will stick to the small screen and my next step in cinema will depend on the approval from the audience after the release of Geetha Bangle Store. Else, I am comfortable being a character artist,” he says.