<p>Nani’s <em>Dasara</em>, releasing on March 30, is an important film in the Telugu actor’s 15-year career. He plays a drunkard and a ruffian in this violent saga, which seems like the actor’s first attempt at jumping on the pan-India bandwagon. </p>.<p>He is an ‘outsider’ who made a mark with romantic comedies (<em>Ala Modalaindi</em> and <em>Pilla Zamindar)</em> in an industry filled with star families. In recent times, Nani broke his boy-next-door image with movies such as ‘Gentleman’ and ‘Jersey’. Some of his experiments (<em>V</em> and <em>Tuck Jagadish</em>) didn’t work but he has never shied away from adapting to the changing times. </p>.<p>The actor spoke to <span class="italic"><em>Showtime</em> </span>about his upcoming release, his career, industry trends and more. Excerpts: </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Ever since the trailer released, violence and bloodshed in the film have taken centrestage. But what does the movie want to say?</strong></p>.<p>It is a personal story told in a grand manner. This is the story of good winning over evil. That’s what we celebrate every year during the Dasara festival. The film has love, friendship, and the aspect of power equation. ‘Dasara’ is realistic. You won’t feel it’s too cinematic in most of the places. However, there are some larger-than-life portions made for the big-screen experience as well.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Unlike the superstars who mainly entertain, you are a performer who attained a star status over the years. How do you balance the star and the actor in you? Is ‘Dasara’ a film that will catapult you to the superstar status?</strong></p>.<p>If you ask me who am I, I am an actor and if you ask the audience the same question, they will say I am a star. I am here because I am an actor, and I give my 100 per cent to every film. The process might make me a star but my motto is to do good films, those that people love. I have never wanted to be called the ‘Natural Star’. It happened automatically while I was doing my movies. So I will continue the process and let’s see where it takes me. Stardom or even careers cannot go as per plans. In the last 15 years, I have only got excited about scripts and given it my all.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>You rose through the ranks with romantic comedies. So why don’t love stories become pan-India hits? Why does it always have to be big-screen spectacles? For instance, don’t you think people could have been kinder to your ‘Ante Sundariniki’ in theatres?</strong></p>.<p>Every genre has a love story. I don’t think you can make a film without a love story. So, full-fledged love stories will never go out of fashion. There might be phases, where action films or thrillers might be doing well. But we will all go back to the romance genre at some point or the other. </p>.<p>‘Ante Sundariniki’ wasn’t an entirely mainstream film. It had a soul of an indie movie. It was addressing a lot of issues. It spoke about different kinds of people. You make a proper love story, make the leads fall in love with each other and make the audience fall in love with them, then it will definitely be a sensational hit, like a ‘DDLJ’. I really feel a ‘DDLJ’ is around the corner. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Can Telugu cinema have a small-film movement? Why do content-oriented Telugu films not get as much attention as Malayalam films? ‘Sitaramam’ was widely praised on social media but we didn’t see any analytical discussions on it?</strong></p>.<p>Telugu cinema is constantly making successful small films. You get to hear only about big movies and that’s why you feel the industry makes only such films. But the industry is constantly producing small-scale films. They never want attention outside of the Telugu industry because they are made for the Telugu-speaking states. As for ‘Sitaramam’, they had no intention to release majorly in other languages. But once the film garnered immense praise, they decided to widen their reach. Malayalam films have always received critical acclaim because they are made for that purpose whereas content-<br />oriented Telugu films don’t consciously look for complete critical acclaim. They try to strike a balance between financial success and critical praise.</p>
<p>Nani’s <em>Dasara</em>, releasing on March 30, is an important film in the Telugu actor’s 15-year career. He plays a drunkard and a ruffian in this violent saga, which seems like the actor’s first attempt at jumping on the pan-India bandwagon. </p>.<p>He is an ‘outsider’ who made a mark with romantic comedies (<em>Ala Modalaindi</em> and <em>Pilla Zamindar)</em> in an industry filled with star families. In recent times, Nani broke his boy-next-door image with movies such as ‘Gentleman’ and ‘Jersey’. Some of his experiments (<em>V</em> and <em>Tuck Jagadish</em>) didn’t work but he has never shied away from adapting to the changing times. </p>.<p>The actor spoke to <span class="italic"><em>Showtime</em> </span>about his upcoming release, his career, industry trends and more. Excerpts: </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Ever since the trailer released, violence and bloodshed in the film have taken centrestage. But what does the movie want to say?</strong></p>.<p>It is a personal story told in a grand manner. This is the story of good winning over evil. That’s what we celebrate every year during the Dasara festival. The film has love, friendship, and the aspect of power equation. ‘Dasara’ is realistic. You won’t feel it’s too cinematic in most of the places. However, there are some larger-than-life portions made for the big-screen experience as well.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Unlike the superstars who mainly entertain, you are a performer who attained a star status over the years. How do you balance the star and the actor in you? Is ‘Dasara’ a film that will catapult you to the superstar status?</strong></p>.<p>If you ask me who am I, I am an actor and if you ask the audience the same question, they will say I am a star. I am here because I am an actor, and I give my 100 per cent to every film. The process might make me a star but my motto is to do good films, those that people love. I have never wanted to be called the ‘Natural Star’. It happened automatically while I was doing my movies. So I will continue the process and let’s see where it takes me. Stardom or even careers cannot go as per plans. In the last 15 years, I have only got excited about scripts and given it my all.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>You rose through the ranks with romantic comedies. So why don’t love stories become pan-India hits? Why does it always have to be big-screen spectacles? For instance, don’t you think people could have been kinder to your ‘Ante Sundariniki’ in theatres?</strong></p>.<p>Every genre has a love story. I don’t think you can make a film without a love story. So, full-fledged love stories will never go out of fashion. There might be phases, where action films or thrillers might be doing well. But we will all go back to the romance genre at some point or the other. </p>.<p>‘Ante Sundariniki’ wasn’t an entirely mainstream film. It had a soul of an indie movie. It was addressing a lot of issues. It spoke about different kinds of people. You make a proper love story, make the leads fall in love with each other and make the audience fall in love with them, then it will definitely be a sensational hit, like a ‘DDLJ’. I really feel a ‘DDLJ’ is around the corner. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Can Telugu cinema have a small-film movement? Why do content-oriented Telugu films not get as much attention as Malayalam films? ‘Sitaramam’ was widely praised on social media but we didn’t see any analytical discussions on it?</strong></p>.<p>Telugu cinema is constantly making successful small films. You get to hear only about big movies and that’s why you feel the industry makes only such films. But the industry is constantly producing small-scale films. They never want attention outside of the Telugu industry because they are made for the Telugu-speaking states. As for ‘Sitaramam’, they had no intention to release majorly in other languages. But once the film garnered immense praise, they decided to widen their reach. Malayalam films have always received critical acclaim because they are made for that purpose whereas content-<br />oriented Telugu films don’t consciously look for complete critical acclaim. They try to strike a balance between financial success and critical praise.</p>