In an interaction with TNIE Showville, actor Srikanth talks about his films and the roadblocks his career ran into.
"The most important quality you need to survive in the movie industry is perseverance, because you never know when exactly you’ll succeed in your career. It also gets tricky to define what success really implies, as it’s not just about giving hits.
When a couple of your movies do well, everything seems normal and steady, but success can be elusive. A person you could never imagine becoming big, might just become the next big thing overnight. On the other hand, a top notch actor, with a stellar repertoire can very well go into oblivion. That is the only truth.
In any other profession, people can lead a normal life. However, once you become an actor, your work becomes your identity for the rest of your life. So, you need to be resilient and nurture a perfect balance between body and the soul.
When you succeed as an actor, the world begins to take notice immediately; but when you fail, the same world mocks you. You will be questioned and be answerable to all. They think they have the right to do so because they pay for the ticket and expect so much. You can hardly blame them.
I have seen both success and failure in my career. When you are successful, even people you haven’t heard of will call and wish you. But when you are not doing well, everybody disassociates themselves from you in a second. Actor Vikram had to struggle for about 15 years to make it big and he has fortunately been able sustain his success. Actor Ajith didn’t have a film background and he must have struggled a lot initially to reach great heights. Similarly, Suriya was mocked as he wasn’t a good dancer but now he stands out as an actor. We all have our moments in the sun.
Right before my first movie, 'Roja Koottam', I was signed for a movie but was suddenly dropped. It became embarrassing as my close circle of relatives and friends came to know about it. However, I took it as a challenge and made my place in the industry. Even in the last two years, I had to struggle a lot to make a comeback. There have been situations when I had to miss my lunch and dinner to meet some important people. But I didn’t give up and came back stronger than ever.
There are no permanent friends in the film industry because everybody needs to earn a livelihood and have a family to support. You can’t blame them. But the present generation really bonds well and I appreciate that. It has never been like this before.
One of the most important things for an actor is to be patient even when one’s personal space is being encroached upon. We are under the scanner at all times, being judged and talked about. There are many things to complain about in the industry but several more to be thankful for. As for me, I only want to be known as a good actor in the long run.
