Naga Chaitanya will return this Friday in Oka Laila Kosam, directed by Vijay Kumar Konda who gave the hugely successful Gunde Jaari Gallanthayinde. The actor has been part of a massive hit, Manam, and a box office turkey in the form of Autonagar Surya. Here, he reflects on films and why he is identified with romantic films.
Going by the trailers, Oka Laila Kosam looks like a coming-of-age romantic comedy. What is it that appealed to you about the film?
I haven’t done a love story with a lot of entertainment. Ye Maya Chesave was a love story, sure, but explored a different dimension. Oka Laila Kosam has a lot of humour and will appeal to the family audience as well.
Your film 100% Love was also a love story that appealed to the family audience. How different is Oka Laila Kosam?
In 100% Love, we were talking about students just out of school. The romance here is a bit more mature.
Did Vijay Kumar Konda approach you with the script after Gunde Jaari Gallanthayinde?
He didn’t come to me with a script. He sounded out a few ideas and then developed this story.
Isn’t it tough to judge how a film would turn out without reading a full-fledged script?
Even with a script, I’d say it is difficult because so many parameters go into making a film. Ultimately, you go by your gut feeling. However, I like to listen to a complete narration. Moviemaking is becoming more organised and I won’t deny that it is an advantage to have a bound script.
Though you’ve acted in a fair share of action films, the audience identifies you with romantic roles. Is that, to an extent, because you are Nagarjuna’s son?
I don’t know. I enjoy the making of an action film — the technicalities of planning and executing action sequences. But I am also at ease with love stories. I don’t want to be bracketed into a romantic hero or an action hero, which is why I try and vary what I’m doing.
As an actor, how do you approach your roles such that the romantic characters don’t appear repetitive?
I am a director’s actor and surrender myself to the fillmmaker’s vision. With each film, I’ve noticed that I have new ideas going by my experiences and that helps me perform better.
Looking back, what do you think went wrong with Autonagar Surya?
It’s a film I am proud of. But I think, somewhere, Deva Katta and I got carried away with trying to stick to the definition of a commercial cinema by introducing songs and comic episodes. Perhaps the film would have worked if we had stuck to its soul.
The film had references to Shiva. Did you expect Autonagar Surya to work for you just as did Shiva did for Nagarjuna?
Personally, I don’t like it when people compare an action film to Shiva and a romance to Geetanjali. My aim is not to make another Shiva or Geetanjali.
Manam has a story which, at one level, can sound silly with its convenient coincidences. How did you react to the story?
I loved the idea and I knew only we could pull it off. Had three unrelated people acted in the film, it wouldn’t have clicked. Because my grandfather, father and I worked together, some of the bonhomie and role reversal added to the charm of the film. There were a few scenes that sounded ridiculous and I remember asking (director) Vikram, ‘do you think the audience will buy this?’ But the way he detailed every scene made people want to believe in it.
What’s next?
I am working on a film with director Sudhir Verma. I liked his Swamy Ra Ra. It’s a role I haven’t done before, that of a conman.
