Shedding light
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Ramesh clears the air while Devraj lies low. The industry is in the doldrums with remakes tanking at the box office
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MR. NICE GUY Ramesh clarifies his stand on dubbing for Mani Ratnam's film
Ramesh is not easily rattled. In a business where chicanery is common, the consensus is that he's one of the most affable and likeable guys around. In fact his name on the marquee assures you a neat family entertainer. Producer Mani Ratnam's outburst against Ramesh not dubbing for Ekadanta till he was paid in full, forced the actor to clarify.
"It is funny because I had finished dubbing long before they settled my dues and basically this is a part of the relationship between the actor and the producer. We actors are not stone hearted.
We do waive part of our dues if the producer's woes are genuine. Producers I have worked with have no complaints so a man whom I've never worked with should not talk about me," says the actor.
On the other hand, Mani Ratnam's outburst against Ravichandran talking ill about a film he had acted in was fully justified. Ravi had no business talking about Sai Prakash's directorial abilities (Odahuttidavalu) when the film was due for release, especially when his recent films as director were damp squibs.
Taking a break
Devraj is lying low. His foray into Tamil cinema was stalled after a short schedule because the hero, Arya ran into trouble with the producer's council for reneging an old commitment.
The next schedule is in November. Meanwhile he's doing a film called Gang Leader. "I play a police officer," says Devraj. He's also doing a Telugu film but the project that excites him is a mythological being planned by a group of techies. "I cannot divulge details," says the actor with a twinkle of anticipation in his eyes.
There seems to be an inordinate delay in his son Prajwal's debut film. "That is because the film has 25 minutes of graphics. It took some time but the film is ready and should be released in a couple of months."
Hard times
Bad times seem to be back for the Kannada film industry. The impasse about starting new films has not helped. The film industry is like a joint family without a strong sensible elder.
Shivraj Kumar is cool-headed and speaks sense but does not wield the influence that his father did, yet. So projects on the verge of taking off have been put on hold indefinitely.
Recent releases, especially the remakes, have turned duds at the box-office.
While Ravi Shastri sunk without a trace Sirivantha has not made Rockline Venkatesh a srimantha and Aishwarya has not lived up to its title despite the publicity overkill.
It is too early to talk about Thangigaagi (Thirupacchi), which got an excellent opening. It's Jothe Jotheyali, an original, that continues to draw youngsters and family audiences.
It is high time filmmakers shunned the DVD player, opened their window and sought inspiration from real life like Ratnaja (Nenapirali) and Dinaker (JJ) have.
S. SHIVA KUMAR
sshivu@yahoo.com
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