New hero on the horizon
MALATHI RANGARAJAN
|
Narain, the hero of `Chithiram Paesudhadi,' is handling Malayalam and Tamil ventures with utmost caution.
|
HAPPY WITH HIS CHOICES: Narain
"Just the first step, and all credit goes to filmmaker Mysskin," is how Narain, the new hero on the Tamil film circuit, describes the success of his debut film, `Chithiram Paesudhadi.' The young man joins the large league of directors, choreographers and cinematographers bitten by the acting bug — Narain is a cinematography student from the Film Institute, Chennai, and an erstwhile assistant of Rajeev Menon. The actor was on a two-day trip to the city — he is in Kerala at present shooting for director Lal Jose's `Classmate.'
"I wanted to begin on a strong note in Tamil and Mysskin's offer was like a dream come true," continues the actor. "The vigour and spiritedness with which he narrated the story had me hooked. We vibe beautifully and the rehearsals were an exhilarating experience."
Narain was thrilled when his fraternity of camera folks showered accolades on `Chithiram ... ' Adding to the elation was the news that actor Vikram had watched the film and was all praise for the film and its hero.
From the Malayalam screen
Narain may be new to Tamil, but he's a known face on the Malayalam screen, introduced as he was by none other than Adoor Goplakrishnan, in his `Nizhalkuththu.' It was at Rajeev Menon's office that Narain (known as Sunil Kumar till recently) was introduced to Gopalakrishnan as Menon's assistant who was more interested in facing the camera. "Can you emote," the ace director asked him. Narain nodded and was in the project. As simple as that! "I played the hangman's son in the film. A small role but a great opportunity," he says.
Working for Rajeev Menon was indeed a turning point. He has been a very understanding senior," Narain goes on. Even when Narain joined his unit, he was frank enough to tell him that his heart was in acting. "You learn filming before you consider a change of line," Menon had advised. And Narain continued with him. "I resigned from the unit twice and every time I returned he would take me back. He was sincerely worried about my future," Narain recalls. Naturally, because after `Nizhalkuththu' not many acting offers came Narain's way. "Another such person who has been very encouraging is Gopali, who worked in the Chennai kendra of Doordarshan," he adds.
Filmmaker Jayaraj then offered him `Four the People' (dubbed in Telugu, and in Tamil as `Four Students'). Initially Narain was given to understand he would play one of the four boys. Only when he landed at the location spot, did Jayaraj tell him that he would act as the cop. "I was a little disappointed, but he was confident that I would suit the role. After a couple of days of work, people around said I'll make it," Narain chuckles and adds: "I can't forget that he gave me a chance even without having a test shoot done." And when the sequel, `By the People' was made, Narain was the only actor to be roped in from the old team.
Choices well made
Be it `Annorikkal,' `Sheilapathi' (an off-beat venture directed by Sharath), or `Classmate' which has three other heroes — Prithviraj, Indrajit and Jayasurya — the leading lady has been Kavya Madhavan. Laughs Narain: "Actually Kavya, Bhavna and Meera Jasmine, the heroines I've worked with, are all my seniors in the profession. I get very tense when I'm shooting them." His `Achuvinte Amma' was opposite Meera Jasmine. "I'm both puzzled and grateful to Satyan Anthikkad, the maker of `Achuvinte ... ' for giving me such a wonderful break. I wanted to do stuff very different from what I had done in `Four the People.' But how Jayaraj could have conceived a comedy with me after my rough role in `Four ... ' beats me, and he succeeded in the attempt!" wows Narain.
Narain is very selective about his projects — that's no big deal, because every hero today is. "It's not a complete no to commercial films. I like to try out formula stuff too," he smiles.
His next Tamil film will be `Pallikkoodam' with Thankar Bachan. "I have a very interesting character, and the story is unusual," says an excited Narain.
Hailing from a background that has nothing to do with cinema and being adamant about wanting to make it in films as hero, Narain must have caused his parents much anxiety. "True. My being an only child added to their tension,' he smiles.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
