It was a shock: Varun on Niharika’s decision to act

The very thought that an Indian—and that too a Telugu guy—fighting for British against the Axis drove me to do ‘Kanche’

Coming from a family of superstars, one expected Varun Tej to follow up his soft act in ‘Mukunda’ with a commercial avatar, but the lanky actor, instead, chose to star in filmmaker Krish’s ‘Kanche’, a love story set in the backdrop of World War II.

“After ‘Mukunda’, many people advised me to do a mass entertainer but I was keen on a content-driven story. Krish had me in mind for ‘Kanche’ and when he pitched the plot line I jumped at the opportunity. “The very thought that an Indian—and that too a Telugu guy—fighting for British against the Axis drove me to do the film,” he gushes.

The film, which traces the journey of Dhupati Haribabu (played by Varun) in a non-linear mode, required the actor, besides interacting with an ex-military officer to get into the body language and mindset of a soldier, to attend language workshops. “Since there were little references, I also had to watch Hollywood flicks like ‘Saving Private Ryan’, ‘Behind Enemy Lines’ and ‘The Fury’ to get into the groove.”

Admittedly, the film’s war episodes, which were shot for 25 days in Georgia, took a toll on his body. “The daylight in Georgia was longer. We used to start at six in the morning and pack up at eight. There were instances where I was required to carry guns and head gear weighing 35 kilos and move according to the camera movements,” he quips.

Varun believes that it’s important to create your own mark no matter which family you belong to. “At the end of the audience come to see you perform, right?” he asks. “The family lineage will help you for a couple of films and after that you are on your own.” The actor, who has almost wrapped up shooting for Puri Jagannadh’s next, is equally excited about his sister Niharika’s foray into films.

The noted TV personality will be debuting with ‘Mallelatheeramlo’ director Ramaraju’s next. “It was not an overnight decision,” he confides, adding that “it was a shock to us.” Uncle (Chiranjeevi) was reluctant initially but when he understood that she was extremely passionate about it, he gave his go-ahead.

He was the first one to have been told about it. Even I didn’t know about it.” He continues after a pause, “I felt bad when she didn’t inform me first, though I was aware that she was interested about films and acting. When I confronted her on the same, she replied saying that I already knew na.”

By Nagaraj Goud