Reeshma Nanaiah, who made her debut with Prem’s Ek Love Ya, feels her second film is equally important. In her sophomore film, Raana, which is directed by Nanda Kishore, Reeshma stars alongside Padehulli hero Shreyas Manju. Talking about the learnings from her two films, Reeshma said, “More than making mistakes and not wanting to repeat it, I want to do better than my last performance. I was looking for a role that was in contrast to my debut, which is one of the reasons I picked Raana. Secondly, I started shooting for Prem’s film when I was 17 years, and I’m 20 now. My on-screen appearance too will have a difference.”
Reeshma plays the happy-go-lucky Priya in Raana, who lives in the present, and enjoys dominating her love. “Priya stands by her love, especially during troubles, and that is her character graph in Raana.” Calling her experience of working with Nanda Kishore as completely different from her first film, Reeshma says, “In contrast with Prem sir, whose voice was heard all the time on the sets of Ek Love Ya, Nanda sir is a very calm director who remains quiet on the sets, and doesn’t get tensed.”
Apart from her upcoming film, Baandariyalli, which stars Ganesh in the lead, all of Reeshma’s films have mostly newcomers (Raana, Shreyas Manju, and Dhanveerrah). However, she is happy that her films have been directed by experienced directors like Prem, Nanda Kishore and Preetham Gubbi.
Talking about Raana, Reeshma says that the team was technically strong. “DoP Shekar Chandru is a fantastic cameraman, and we have music director Chandan Shetty too, who has come with his signature style of songs,” says Reeshma who shares that both Shreyas Manju and her have given their best in their second film. “Within newcomers, there is no ego clash. We didn’t have any hesitancy in communicating, and we could give and take suggestions. It was a healthy competition.”
Reeshma feels that the kind of films she is signing has enabled her to explore her talent. “Hopefully. the directors see my potential, and good projects come my way. Apart from the project, the story, the people, or the team I work with also play an important role in my script selection,” she says. In fact, Reeshma admits that her entire family (father, mother, and sister) takes a call on her projects. “I was in my PUC when I started my acting career.
They could have easily said no to my passion and asked me to focus on my studies. But they encouraged me and stood by my side. So I’m more than happy to have them be part of the think tank,” says Reeshma, adding, “But yeah, there are clashes between them and me regarding the kind of subjects we choose. We later sit and talk, and take a unanimous decision, and it is only then that I go forward with it. We are a family, who enjoys teamwork.”