Rana Daggubati’s portrayal of Daniel Shekar in Bheemla Nayak left fans impressed. He has received much praise for his nuanced performance, and the confrontational scenes with Pawan Kalyan. The Saagar K Chandra directorial released on February 25 and is doing well at the box office.
The Baahubali actor interacted with the media in Hyderabad and opened up about the success of the film.
Tell us about your experience of watching Bheemla Nayak in theatres.
I was in Mumbai for a shoot on the day of the release. I watched it there, and I felt the craze of fans here. I got loads of wishes from all corners, and it was a fulfilling experience.
How did it feel when you heard that Pawan Kalyan was on board?
I believe in cinema that stays true to the genre. With a stalwart like Pawan Kalyan doing a film like Bheemla Nayak, I expected a good starting point for Telugu cinema to experiment and venture beyond the obvious.
Your thoughts on your journey with Trivikram?
He is an exciting person, and all his words are valuable. He is a knowledgeable person. He has got a grip on language and culture. You keep learning something new in each film, and here in Bheemla Nayak, I learned a lot from Trivikram and Pawan Kalyan.
Is it beneficial to have a reference point while portraying a character on the screen?
Bheemla Nayak is a different film. The emotion stays from the start to the end of the movie. There are no subplots and other conflicts. I can take a reference point from Koshi’s character from the original. There must be many changes. A rich politician in Telangana or Andhra Pradesh reacts differently, compared to the one from Kerala. The sensibilities are different. We are flamboyant. When I watched Marvels’ Iron Man, I liked Robert Downey Jr’s character. He is flamboyant and maverick. I could relate Danny’s character with that. Luckily my reference point to Danny is closer.
The best compliment that you have received for Bheemla Nayak so far?
I feel the best one was from my father (Daggubati Suresh Babu). He said the film was very satisfying.
How was it working with Pawan Kalyan?
I got exposed to cinema in a different way. I have been doing films in several languages and genres. I worked with a variety of people. But Pawan Kalyan is something unique. He is a pure soul. I heard many things about him, getting to know him up close is a different thing. I enjoyed the whole process.
What are your thoughts on experimenting with different genres after the success of Bheemla Nayak?
I picked a few films that were rejected by others. I understood how to play characters but never understood the process of becoming a hero. I like to stick to the story and stay away from commercial traps. I always tell my father that I will get a hit without any commercial elements. So, I want to stick to my core belief. I always believed in doing films with new concepts and will keep doing them.
What were the challenges while shooting for the movie?
The challenge was to come out of the original and make a different movie. Sometimes it’s scary. Here all good things happened because of Trivikram. Some scenes were shot like the original. But later, we realized it’s not close to our culture. In Malayalam, the film is verbose. Here we had to cut it short. As I told you before, the characteristic traits have to be tweaked as per the tastes of the Telugu audience.
Has Bheemla Nayak shaped the way you envisioned?
My imagination was limited to one genre, but Bheemla Nayak went beyond that. In one line of emotion, we could hold the audience’s attention for more than 2 hours, and that’s an achievement.
Your family has a reputation for playing safe with films. You are quite different from them.
I grew up in a film world. My home is a film location. In 5th grade, I learned editing. The way I look at movies is different altogether. I want to do something I have never seen in the cinema. That was always my attraction as a young kid. I like to watch something new and want to do new and different characters.
The Telugu version runs from Bheemla Nayak’s point of view. What is your take on it?
It was quite a long process. When Pawan Kalyan was on board, we wanted to add more layers to the characters and not just how Biju Menon played it. We don’t like stuff like that. We enjoy big things happening on screen. That’s why there is a change in the ways of Bheemla Nayak and Daniel Shekar were presented on screen.
How was it working with Saagar K Chandra?
Right from the beginning, Sagar was sorted. He is a perfectionist. I was jealous of him. He got a wonderful chance of working with Pawan Kalyan and Trivikram. He extracted what he needed from the actors, and he also got good control of the set. He is also a person who is faithful to a film’s genre. He sticks to the style. He became a mature director with Bheemla Nayak.
How do you feel about Thaman’s music for Bheemla Nayak?
Thaman is a blessing to the recent Telugu cinema movement. He is one of the reasons why cinema is so cool. The kind of singers, lyricists, instruments he used for Bheemla Nayak made me spellbound. A different Thaman is speaking to you in the film. It’s only possible by Thaman to get an audio like this. He has carved a new story of his victory.
Will there be a Bheemla Nayak 2?
What will we do there? Fight with each other again! That’s a difficult thing, I believe.
What is the production status of Netflix project, starring you and Venkatesh Daggubati?
The project is a web series, not a film. It will be a very new commercial and engaging project. At this moment, I can’t reveal more about it.
