I have no fear of working with debutant filmmakers: Nani

Express News Service

The iconic Maya Angelou once said, “When you learn, teach. When you get, give.” Not wanting to get blinded in the showy limelight of cinema, ‘Natural Star’ Nani strongly believes in the concept of paying it forward. “Somebody gave me the platform to prove myself. Now, when I can do the same for others, it won’t be right if I don’t do this for other newcomers,” says Nani, whose upcoming big-ticket film, Dasara, is directed by a debutant filmmaker Srikanth Odela.

When pointed out that he is one of the few outliers in a world where stars want to do bigger films with experienced filmmakers, Nani simply shrugs it all off, and says, “I see it as my responsibility, but I don’t do it just for the sake of it either. I do it only if I love their work, and I am confident about their vision. It is not like I don’t work with experienced directors either. There is a balance. But I have no fear of working with debutants. I don’t see these attempts as risks. It is all about what excites me.” 

It is this excitement that has made Nani give it all for Dasara. “If it was up to me, I would ask the makers to exhibit the film for free after gaining profits because I want everyone to see the world Srikanth has envisioned in the film,” says Nani, who swells with pride when talking about the Dasara filmmaker. “He isn’t a great narrator but he kept me engaged for four hours while he narrated Dasara. I liked the honesty in his narration, and it was infectious enough for me to get onboard.” 

Although Nani was immediately convinced about doing the project, he did his due diligence before signing Dasara, which had to be mounted on a really big scale. The debut filmmaker was given a shoestring budget to shoot a couple of scenes and prove his mettle. “What he did in that budget was mindblowing. I am not sure if many established technicians can pull off what he did in that budget,” says the actor, who shares that Dasara was one of the most physically taxing films of his career. “The only reason we did it all with a smile was because of Srikanth’s vision and how he translated it onscreen.” 

Nani feels a sense of triumph knowing that filmmakers like Srikanth Odela are coming to him with scripts like Dasara. It is almost like filmmakers know they can knock on Nani’s doors with a unique script, and they will definitely find an audience with him. “It is extremely satisfying, and it is exactly the place I was working towards for more than a decade. Good stories can come from anywhere, and I want my address to be their first choice. Be it Dasara or Shyam Singha Roy, there is a sense of happiness when such films are offered,” says Nani, with a heightened sense of confidence that drives the conversation towards his work as a producer. “My Wallposter Cinema banner only backs unique ideas, and when we introduce new filmmakers and actors, it becomes a satisfying endeavour.”  

‘Mass entertainers are the backbone of cinema’

The pursuit of this satisfaction is what drives Nani to each project. Although he prefers being an actor, Nani understands he has to navigate the trappings of stardom too. “People and media make you a star, but I want to be known as an actor. That is the ultimate aim. Being a star is the byproduct of being an actor, and a lot of other checkboxes being ticked.” says a refreshingly candid Nani, adding, “All I care about is developing enough trust for the audience to say ‘Let’s go to this Nani film.’ I want to keep that feeling alive for as long as possible by telling different stories every single time.” When pointed out that stars of his stature usually do more Dasaras rather than the Ante Sundaranikis and Shyam Singha Roys, Nani is quick to once again dispel the old notions and requisites of stardom, and says, “Now, everyone calls me a star, but my next film is a rom-com. I am playing the father of a six-year-old. I am not worried about my image at all.”

Throughout Nani’s career, we have seen how moving away from the beaten track without caring about the image has kept him in good stead. In fact, the train scene from Jersey has inadvertently become one of the most famous clippings on social media. That scene about second chances and the pursuit of happiness resonated with many, and Nani ascribes it to consistently delivering good work because such moments cannot be created. “I didn’t know that the Jersey scene will be celebrated.

But, I want to do good films that have those organic moments,” says Nani, who expresses genuine happiness in how his films are receiving love not just from Telugu audiences but other languages too, especially in Tamil where he has worked in multiple films. “Honestly, Tamil was never another cinema for me. When I keep getting love from an industry I respect, I feel so great. Also, apart from Telugu stalwarts like Vishwanath garu and Bapu garu, some of my biggest inspirations were Mani (Ratnam) sir and Kamal Haasan sir. When I am doing commercial films like Nenu Local, I look upto Rajini sir,” says Nani.

While Nani’s filmography might point at his affinity toward non-masala genres, he asserts that mass masala films are the reason why the Indian film industry is so big. “If we don’t have the mass commercial entertainers, then there is no revenue in the industry. The system will collapse if no one is going to theatres, and if no one is going to theatres, there is no point in making a good offbeat film also. Mass entertainers are the backbone of cinema,” says the actor, who also expresses clarity on the P-word which is a raging theme in recent times. “Even if a film is indeed tagged as a pan-Indian project, it is important to understand where it generated from. Pathaan is a Hindi film. KGF is a Kannada film.

ikram is a Tamil film. RRR is a Telugu film. When these films get love from all over the country, it becomes an Indian film,” signs off Nani, but not before reminding us that the Natural Star prefers being an actor first. “When people talk about films making so many crores, I understand how the numbers matter, but what really makes me happy is that so many people have watched my work. What greater happiness for an actor than knowing that he has a huge audience.”

<br> The iconic Maya Angelou once said, “When you learn, teach. When you get, give.” Not wanting to get blinded in the showy limelight of cinema, ‘Natural Star’ Nani strongly believes in the concept of paying it forward. “Somebody gave me the platform to prove myself. Now, when I can do the same for others, it won’t be right if I don’t do this for other newcomers,” says Nani, whose upcoming big-ticket film, Dasara, is directed by a debutant filmmaker Srikanth Odela.

When pointed out that he is one of the few outliers in a world where stars want to do bigger films with experienced filmmakers, Nani simply shrugs it all off, and says, “I see it as my responsibility, but I don’t do it just for the sake of it either. I do it only if I love their work, and I am confident about their vision. It is not like I don’t work with experienced directors either. There is a balance. But I have no fear of working with debutants. I don’t see these attempts as risks. It is all about what excites me.” 

It is this excitement that has made Nani give it all for Dasara. “If it was up to me, I would ask the makers to exhibit the film for free after gaining profits because I want everyone to see the world Srikanth has envisioned in the film,” says Nani, who swells with pride when talking about the Dasara filmmaker. “He isn’t a great narrator but he kept me engaged for four hours while he narrated Dasara. I liked the honesty in his narration, and it was infectious enough for me to get onboard.” googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

Although Nani was immediately convinced about doing the project, he did his due diligence before signing Dasara, which had to be mounted on a really big scale. The debut filmmaker was given a shoestring budget to shoot a couple of scenes and prove his mettle. “What he did in that budget was mindblowing. I am not sure if many established technicians can pull off what he did in that budget,” says the actor, who shares that Dasara was one of the most physically taxing films of his career. “The only reason we did it all with a smile was because of Srikanth’s vision and how he translated it onscreen.” 

Nani feels a sense of triumph knowing that filmmakers like Srikanth Odela are coming to him with scripts like Dasara. It is almost like filmmakers know they can knock on Nani’s doors with a unique script, and they will definitely find an audience with him. “It is extremely satisfying, and it is exactly the place I was working towards for more than a decade. Good stories can come from anywhere, and I want my address to be their first choice. Be it Dasara or Shyam Singha Roy, there is a sense of happiness when such films are offered,” says Nani, with a heightened sense of confidence that drives the conversation towards his work as a producer. “My Wallposter Cinema banner only backs unique ideas, and when we introduce new filmmakers and actors, it becomes a satisfying endeavour.”  

‘Mass entertainers are the backbone of cinema’

The pursuit of this satisfaction is what drives Nani to each project. Although he prefers being an actor, Nani understands he has to navigate the trappings of stardom too. “People and media make you a star, but I want to be known as an actor. That is the ultimate aim. Being a star is the byproduct of being an actor, and a lot of other checkboxes being ticked.” says a refreshingly candid Nani, adding, “All I care about is developing enough trust for the audience to say ‘Let’s go to this Nani film.’ I want to keep that feeling alive for as long as possible by telling different stories every single time.” When pointed out that stars of his stature usually do more Dasaras rather than the Ante Sundaranikis and Shyam Singha Roys, Nani is quick to once again dispel the old notions and requisites of stardom, and says, “Now, everyone calls me a star, but my next film is a rom-com. I am playing the father of a six-year-old. I am not worried about my image at all.”

Throughout Nani’s career, we have seen how moving away from the beaten track without caring about the image has kept him in good stead. In fact, the train scene from Jersey has inadvertently become one of the most famous clippings on social media. That scene about second chances and the pursuit of happiness resonated with many, and Nani ascribes it to consistently delivering good work because such moments cannot be created. “I didn’t know that the Jersey scene will be celebrated.

But, I want to do good films that have those organic moments,” says Nani, who expresses genuine happiness in how his films are receiving love not just from Telugu audiences but other languages too, especially in Tamil where he has worked in multiple films. “Honestly, Tamil was never another cinema for me. When I keep getting love from an industry I respect, I feel so great. Also, apart from Telugu stalwarts like Vishwanath garu and Bapu garu, some of my biggest inspirations were Mani (Ratnam) sir and Kamal Haasan sir. When I am doing commercial films like Nenu Local, I look upto Rajini sir,” says Nani.

While Nani’s filmography might point at his affinity toward non-masala genres, he asserts that mass masala films are the reason why the Indian film industry is so big. “If we don’t have the mass commercial entertainers, then there is no revenue in the industry. The system will collapse if no one is going to theatres, and if no one is going to theatres, there is no point in making a good offbeat film also. Mass entertainers are the backbone of cinema,” says the actor, who also expresses clarity on the P-word which is a raging theme in recent times. “Even if a film is indeed tagged as a pan-Indian project, it is important to understand where it generated from. Pathaan is a Hindi film. KGF is a Kannada film.

ikram is a Tamil film. RRR is a Telugu film. When these films get love from all over the country, it becomes an Indian film,” signs off Nani, but not before reminding us that the Natural Star prefers being an actor first. “When people talk about films making so many crores, I understand how the numbers matter, but what really makes me happy is that so many people have watched my work. What greater happiness for an actor than knowing that he has a huge audience.”