Nagarjuna says Devadas co-star Nani's films strike perfect balance between realistic drama and magic

“I’ve been in this industry for nearly 32 years now, and I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever about how my career has turned out. It really helps when you don’t think too much about your work and be happy. Everything is in your mind and I believe I have survived in this industry for so long because I think like a young man. I’m still a 25 year old in my mind. Some of my friends have been suggesting that I should make more friends from the younger lot. Sometimes, I feel that Naga Chaitanya is older than me because he keeps advising me about a lot of things,” Nagarjuna says, putting his career into perspective. Perhaps, it is also the secret to his everlasting charming persona, which continues to intrigue an entire generation of moviegoers. It is a miracle that he has not gotten bored of people’s curiosity around his fitness. After all, he is 59, although that is difficult to fathom. [caption id=“attachment_4505315” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Nagarjuna/Image from YouTube.[/caption] While there is no denying that he is giving a stiff competition to the latest generation of actors in terms of his fitness and style statement, Nagarjuna is quite aware about the changing dynamics of his acting career. In recent years, he has been signing a slew of multi-starrers, and his next slate of films, including an sci-fi film directed by Dhanush and Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra, have him play important roles, along with a bunch of other actors. Reflecting on his recent choices, Nagarjuna avers, “You have to be realistic about the kind of roles you can take up at any given point of time in your career. I’m 59 now and I’m not sure if I can do a true-blue romantic film now. I can’t be playing roles that the current generation of actors are playing. There’s always a quest to find something interesting to do. I was quite happy when I got Devadas and it’s been a while since I’ve played such a fun role. Then, there’s Dhanush’s film and Brahmastra. Both of them have exciting roles for me and I’m eager to see how the audience reacts.” On the other hand, he denies the notion that multi-starrers mitigate risks at the box office. “On the contrary, there’s plenty of pressure when you look at the project on the whole. You have to get it right and hope that the film does really well, otherwise people will end up saying that the film bombed despite such big names in the cast. In any case, films are more or less like startups. All of us believe in an idea, a director’s vision, and work towards achieving a common goal. However, you have to understand that most startups fail. Films are no different. It’s kind of misleading to believe that an entertaining film will work wonders at box office. One of my films, Chandraleka, which I believe is extremely entertaining, bombed so badly that it didn’t even run beyond the first weekend back in the ‘90s (laughs). Sometimes, things just don’t work and you wouldn’t even know why. All you can do is focus on your work and give it your best,” Nagarjuna elucidates. In his recent film, Devadas, Nagarjuna teamed up with Nani for the first time. The actor says that he has grown quite fond of his co-star. “I didn’t know him personally before this although I did watch his films. I don’t like films which are too realistic and raw. I prefer that added element of magic which make movies what they are. And I’ve always found Nani’s films strike that balance between realistic drama and some magic. He’s a wonderful actor too,” the actor adds. Directed by Sriram Adittya, the film opened to good numbers at the box office, much to the delight of the entire team. “We were quite confident about the script and the drama has a Rajkumar Hirani vibe to it. Although I played a don, the film is lighthearted for most part. Sriram did a good job in handling the whole cast and crew. It was a team work.” [caption id=“attachment_5274811” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Nagarjuna and Nani in a still from Devadas. Image via Twitter[/caption] It is the season of biopics in Telugu cinema, and the moment the topic of NTR’s biopic pops up in the conversation, Nagarjuna confesses that he was quite surprised with the striking resemblance between his father ANR and his nephew Sumanth, who is playing ANR’s role in the biopic. “He was quite attached to my father and grew up in his house. I was pleasantly surprised with his look in NTR’s biopic and there’s definitely a striking resemblance between them,” he says. Time and again, Nagarjuna has stated that he has no plans to make a biopic on ANR’s life. “He led quite a comfortable and peaceful life till the end. There was no major drama or upheavals in his life. I don’t think a biopic on his life will be dramatic enough.” It is not just films across languages that have kept him busy in recent times. Apparently, Nagarjuna was approached for a TV series based on the life of VP Menon, secretary of Sardar Vallabhai Patel, who was responsible for integration of hundreds of princely states into the Union of India post independence. “I really liked the script and the character, but I couldn’t take it up owing to my prior commitments,” he reveals. He is likely to team up with director Kalyan Krishna for a family drama based on the character of Bangarraju from Soggade Chinni Nayana. And then, there is another film in the pipeline which is expected to be directed by Rahul Ravindran. Both the films are in the scripting stages and Nagarjuna is expected to take a call soon after he listens to the script. When his production house, Annapurna Studios, registered a title - Manmadhudu 2 - recently, it fuelled rumours that his film with Ravindran could be on the lines of one of his most popular films, Manmadhudu. However, the actor says that nothing is confirmed so far. “We just registered the title, and we’ll take a call on whether I get to use it, or Akhil, or Chaitanya (laughs). I’m eagerly waiting to see their next set of films - Akhil’s Mr. Majnu and Chaitanya’s Savyasaachi. Both the films have come out really well,” he says. So, is Akhil’s Bollywood debut on the cards soon? “Oh no. There’s still time for that. Akhil is a good friend of Karan Johar, and the latter had brought up this topic couple of times. However, I want Akhil to learn the craft of acting, filmmaking well before he makes his foray in Hindi cinema. I hope he listens to my advice at least this time (laughs),” Nagarjuna signs off.