I’ll be indebted to Koratala Siva: NTR

On a Saturday evening at a star hotel in Hyderabad, a visibly emotional NTR was addressing the media and thanking the audience for their appreciation on his latest hit ‘Janatha Garage’, directed by Koratala Siva.

“I’ll be indebted to Koratala Siva for giving me a beautiful film like ‘Janatha Garage’, which I in turn gave it to my father as a gift on his 60th birthday,” the actor says emotionally, adding, “I always believed there’s a little light at the end of the tunnel and finally that ray of rope came after a wait of 12 years in the form of ‘Janatha Garage’.

I shall be indebted to Siva for giving me my best hit my career. I want to thank the audience for their appreciation and love over the years. I remember once my uncle (Editor Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao) told someone that NTR and Koratala Siva form a formidable combination, and the project finally happened. I thank him for his support throughout the project.”

The ‘Baadshah’ star states that he was never superstitious about his leading ladies. “This is my fourth film with Siva. Before the start of the project many said working with Samantha might not bring success since our earlier two (out of three) projects failed at the box office. But I strongly believe Sam would be apt for the project, ah it finally paid off,” he quips.

The actor got nostalgic while recalling his work experience and a few on the sets moments with Mohanlal. Admitting that he was jittery initially, NTR said, “I may not have the age and experience to share screen space with him but I’m thankful that I got the opportunity to work with him. He is like a father figure. I was having a few jitters initially because of his stature but he made me comfortable.

I learnt several things by closely observing him. The success would have been incomplete without him.” So what does this success mean to the actor? “It made me more responsible and I shall continue to do films with greater accountability.”