Nandamuri Actor says No to Politics

‘Pataas’ has finally ended Kalyan Ram’s poor streak at the box-office as it’s been nearly a decade since he tasted true success.

The joy is visible on the actor’s face. “The word ‘hit’ sounds nice to the ears,” he smiles as we catch him for an interview. “What I learnt during the past ten years holds more importance than the box-office prospects of ‘Pataas’. Not losing your hope, analysing your mistakes and moving forward turned out to be crucial.”

He adds, “I taxed the audience with the screenplay of ‘Om’. They come to the cinema hall to relax but ‘Om’ was a complex screenplay at the outset. I’ve realised my errors.”

The result of ‘Pataas’ has changed his approach towards a script. “I want to keep the audience in mind before I begin a project. At the same time I will experiment, but with caution. I still feel that if narrated well, ‘Om’ would have done extremely well,” he states.

There was never a period when he thought of quitting films during the lull. “Yes, I was disappointed but my family stood by me like a rock.

The thought of quitting films may have crossed my mind but I never gave up. I had belief in myself and wanted to prove a point. It took considerable time to prove a point, that’s the only difference,” he smiles.

There was also a period where he wanted to produce ‘Pataas’ with his superstar brother NTR. “I was busy with ‘Om’ when director Anil narrated me the script of ‘Pataas’ and was in a frame of mind where I wanted to give something new to the audience rather than feature in mainstream cinema,” he says, adding, “I loved the script and told Anil that he will make a good commercial director.

When he met me again after the release of ‘Om’, I asked him why he was persistent that I play the role. He was frank enough to say that he couldn’t see the same energy levels in any of my films after ‘Athannokkade’.”

In the mood to expand his business, he is producing ‘Kick 2’ with Ravi Teja up next. “I earn my bread and butter from films; this business is the only source of income for me. We have to expand as the world is growing.

We are slowly increasing our departments; we recently floated a computer graphics house.” However, he is not someone who keeps a regular tab on his productions. “I don’t care about my business structure as my brother-in-law Hari monitors everything. I only sign cheques. My focus remains on scripts, films and family.”

Admittedly he is a complete family man to the core. “Our family is one and it comes first for me. Other things are immaterial.”

Does politics figure in his scheme of things? “I don’t have any clue about politics but I’m aware of the fact that it’s a bigger ball game than films. I’m someone who gives my 100 per cent to whatever I do and if ever I join politics, I will leave films,” he responds, adding, “Though my father and babai (Balakrishna) are into politics, there’s no pressure on me to get into politics.”

Now that he mentions about babai, one wonders if he has watched ‘Pataas’? “Yes, he did. He, especially, liked the ‘Arey O Samba’ number. He was happy that I delivered a hit after a decade. He appreciated my makeover,” avers the actor who is keen to make a film with babai and brother NTR.

“They are my family and I will do a film with them. The groundwork has commenced but I don’t want to declare anything right away. Only if something productive materialises will I make an announcement.”

By Nagaraj Goud