Atharvaa: DNA is relevant, rooted and emotional

Atharvaa talks about his upcoming film DNA, Nelson Venkatesan's unique working style, his perspective on multi-starrers, and more
Atharvaa: DNA is relevant, rooted and emotional
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Despite a chequered career, Atharvaa has always been a promising actor. Interestingly, ever since his debut in Baana Kaathadi (2010), Atharvaa has never succumbed to following the trend but always tried something unique. He is back to the big screen with director Nelson Venkatesan's DNA, releasing this Friday. "I strongly believe there should be something in the film that adds weapons to my acting arsenal and provides something new for the audience. That way, a film's chances of working increase. That is how I have structured my career since Baana Kaathadi," Atharvaa begins.

Director Nelson Venkatesan is known for telling close-to-reality films with an undercurrent of social commentary. Atharvaa says DNA will not be any different. "That is his strength. That aspect of his filmmaking is what has made me act in DNA. Nelson sir is a strong writer and knows precisely what his characters would do in a particular situation. Nimisha and I play characters rejected by society with no one to depend on or rely on. That's when we meet. How helpful are we to each other in combating the challenges together is what DNA is all about. So the very line of this film helps the kind of storytelling atypical to Nelson," he says.

Atharvaa delves deep into Nelson's working style, saying that he is not someone who wants his actors to be half-hearted on the sets. "Throughout the 60-70 day shoot, he called both of us using the character names. That is how much he wanted Nimisha and me to not be removed from the story and our characters. What resonated with me is the emotion of helplessness. All of us were or are helpless in some way or the other, and the central characters of DNA are two helpless people pushed to the brink," he adds, saying, "I am not married yet, so there are things in the film that I have no first-hand experience of, but I have seen people being in such situations, and reacting to them in their own way. Having observed such people in my real life, the film made a lot of sense to me."

Praising her co-star Nimisha Sajayan for increasing the emotional quotient in their performances, Atharvaa says, "Nimisha is the kind of artist who understands her character without requiring much of a prompt or spoon-feeding. She improvises in the shot. Usually, we brainstorm with the director and bounce ideas to make a scene better. What Nimisha does is she naturally improvises, be it with the lines or in emotions. The catching up that I had to do with her has improved me as an actor. For instance, in a scene where a shot had to be sustained for some 10-15 seconds, it was sustained for close to 40-50 seconds. In these spaces where we go beyond what is written on the paper, we bring rootedness and relatability. And the film is rife with such moments." Expanding on his previous point, Atharvaa says while there is scope for improvisation, it comes with riders recalling how talented a writer Nelson is. "We have all the freedom to improve our performances provided we stick to the 'meter' he has set for us. Nelson has a mental meter as he keenly observes the both of us. As long as I stick to Anand and Nimisha sticks to Divya, he is fine with improvisation. If we even minutely step away from our characters, he politely urges to can go with what is on the paper. That is his way of saying, 'This particular thing sucks,'" he laughs.

Clocking 15 years in the industry, Atharvaa is at a crucial juncture to ensconce his position as a 'solo hero'. However, he views growth differently, and the focus was and will always be on the kind of characters he does. "Yes, people do discourage me from doing multistarrers. But, be it Parasakthi or even a film where I am the sole protagonist, I want it to be complementary. I should have something substantial to contribute to the film and the film should throw something interesting to me. Parasakthi is one such film. The film has tonnes of surprises for the audiences. I look at the bigger picture. The primary question I ask is how and what will the film be like rather than who has more screen time," says Atharvaa, who also expresses happiness that he returns to a film in a period setting for the first time after Paradesi (2013). "While DNA excited me with a character that has come closer to my true self, Parasakthi's kick lies in completely being removed from his nature, lifestyle and milieu," he adds.

Atharvaa says that DNA will have the so-called commercial stuff, such as action and love; he says Nelson made him a promise that he would stick to his storytelling strengths. "There are fights and romance in the film, but he made a promise to me that he will keep the film as grounded as possible. More than the issues that the film deals with, the underlying human emotions are explored satisfactorily. This makes for an interesting watch, while also staying relevant," he signs off.

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