Much like his on-screen persona, actor Dhanush looked, spoke and interacted like a common man. For the last couple of weeks, the actor has been busy providing relief measures for flood-hit Chennai but on Wednesday, it was back to business for Dhanush as he gears up for his upcoming film Nava Manmadhudu (Thanga Magan in Tamil).
“It’s a clean family entertainer. The film is about ideals and is something everybody can relate to. Not just my character – I think every character is relatable to the common man,” the actor explained.
Emphasising that the film is not similar to his earlier film Raghuvaran B.Tech, Dhanush showered praise on his co-stars Samantha and Sathish but reserved special mention for Amy Jackson, who plays a big role in the film.
“Amy has been a revelation. She’s not just good looking but is also a superb actor and has great presence of mind. Amy has surprised us with her talent and she’s definitely here to stay,” Dhanush declared.
The actor, who has earned national acclaim for his roles in Bollywood films like Ranjhanaa and Shamitabh, says they work in a cut-throat film industry.
“At a time when there are so many modes of entertainment, for people to come and watch our movies, it should have something interesting in it. This is a very competitive industry and it’s extremely difficult for you to sustain here for long. I consider myself lucky, as many people who are immensely talented and are far more goodlooking than me are still waiting for an opportunity,” the Maryan star expressed, with brazen honesty.
Dhanush, who has also turned producer, feels that it gives him the chance to make the films that he wants to.
“I think as an actor, I have been able to strike a balance between commercial roles and the roles I would essentially like to. Turning producer has definitely helped in filtering movies of my choice,” he added, with a smile.
Nava Manmadhudu focuses on the love story of the protagonist (Dhanush) both before and after marriage. One of his leading ladies is Samantha, who will be seen playing the role of a traditional saree-clad woman.
“It’s been a while since I’ve had a release in Telugu. I have explored a new shade, a new character in this film. I’ve grown tired of doing routine roles and this was a refreshing experience,” said an excited Samantha.
The actress, who was previously seen in this year’s multi-starrer Son of Sathyamurthy, is delighted to have collaborated with Dhanush.
“It’s an honour to work with Dhanush. He’s just a fabulous actor and was very encouraging on the sets,” the actress expressed. Having stepped into unchartered territory with the film, Samantha admits shooting for Nava Manmadhudu wasn’t an easy task.
“It’s the most realistic character that I’ve had to play. So in order to achieve that, I had to control my habits. For instance, I have this habit of moving my eyebrows a lot, so I had to make sure I don’t move them too much. It was difficult but challenging,” she added.
Directed by Velraj, Nava Manmadhudu releases on December 18.
Title gaffe
Even though the title for the film Nava Manmadhudu suggests that the protagonist is cupid, the makers have clarified that the title has no connection with the film. N Venkatesh, who’s producing the Telugu dubbed version of the film, admitted that he chose the title without watching the movie. “We just looked at the stills and decided to call it Nava Manmadhudu. Since Nagarjuna’s Manmadhudu had done well, we thought of using this title. But after watching the film, we realised that the title is perhaps misleading. Maybe Bangaru Babu would have been a better title,” the producer said.
