Cinema is no stranger to him. With star parents Jayabharathi and Sathar, Krish J Sathar, the latest entrant to K Town, however, has no airs of a star kid. The hero of director Sripriya’s Malini 22 Palayamkottai, has in fact chosen an unusual Kollywood debut, with a character that has shades of grey. In a chat with CE, the Chennai-born actor talks about his journey so far.
“I studied in Don Bosco and did Electrical Engineering in CEG. I was interested in theatre right from school days, but my mother insisted that studies were paramount. So after an MBA from Warwick University, UK, I got a job at Business News America and was based in South America. In the UK, I performed in Shakespearian plays. The acting bug was strong in me but I never thought I would go beyond the stage,” grins Krish. A transfer to New York gave him opportunities to perform at the Broadway theatres there, and enabled a course at the New York Film Academy.
Films found him by chance. “In London, I got an unexpected call from director Siddique, who had seen me at an event. I liked his offer and took the leap into cinema,” recalls Krish.
In 2013 he debuted in Siddique’s Malayalam film, Ladies And Gentlemen, with Mohanlal. Incidentally it was the same film that brought him to Kollywood. Krish narrates, “Suresh Balaji, who is Mohanlal’s brother-in-law, saw the movie and asked me if I would be interested in 22 Malini Palayamkottai, directed by Sripriya. In fact, my dad Sathar had done the role of DK in the Malayalam original. Sripriya aunty is a close family friend and it was a dream opportunity.”
Krish will star in the role made famous by Fahid Fazil and says, “He’s one of my favourite actors and I hope to do justice to my role.”
About the future he says, “My goal is cinema, be it Tamil, Malayalam or any other language. If your passion is your job then that’s the biggest blessing. I want to do meaningful roles that people can connect with.” And, what was mother Jayabharathi’s advice? “She said, be a director’s actor. I too believe the director is the captain of the ship and the producer keeps it afloat. As an actor, I’m the steward on board and must be in sync with everyone for smooth sailing,” he concludes.