Karthi's 'Biriyani' is finally hitting theaters on December 20, 2013 after several postponements. The actor who claims that he has passion for action oriented films right from his childhood, this time alone is coming out with a complete comedy entertainer written and directed by Venkat Prabhu. K E Gnanavel produced it on Studio Green banner with Karthi, Hansika, Premgi Amaren, Ramki and Mandy Takhar in central roles. Yuvan Shankar Raja composed music and Sakthi Saravanan handled cinematography. As part of promotional event Karthi took some time out for this media interview. Here are few excerpts.
What is 'Biriyani' about?
'Biriyani' is a story about two common youth, told in a realistic and stylish manner. Premgi and I played the two youngsters in the film. So far I've been doing back-to-back films with Santhanam only. Premgi and I have worked together in this film and he played my friend. Our combination gave a fresh feel. I played a playboy character in this film. During the drinks session Biriyani will always be the main dish. So that way when two youngsters come out for a Biriyani treat, what problems did they face and how they solved them is all about this film 'Biriyani' told in an entertaining manner.
Now we would like to hear from you a few lines about director Venkat Prabhu.
Venkat Prabhu always comes out with a different screenplay. So far he did films with more than two heroes. But for the first time he did this film with a single hero. He is very strong in portraying dark comedy on the screen, which means the film will progress with the characters seriously but the audience will be having fun while watching. His taking is superb. The entire second half will keep the audience on the edge of the seats. None of his films can be compared with 'Biriyani'. If at all any of his films are close to this film, it is 'Saroja' as that film also has thrilling elements. Another thing I would like to mention is that, his films are far from emotions. However in this film he covered up the sister sentiment too. Madhumita played my sister in this film. 'Biriyani' has all elements that's required for movie buffs.
For the first time you did a film in this genre. What kind of home work have you done?
Since it's a playboy character that chases girls, In order to look young and smart, I reduced some weight and went for a look hair style. I've used grey color lens to my eyes to give a trendy look. So with all these changes That I've made I appeared fresh on the screen.
What was it like working with Hansika?
I worked with her for the first time. She played a journalist and my love lady in this film. Unlike limited to songs for the sake of glamor to the film, she had good scope for showing her acting skills also. Even though we both fight a lot in this film, she helps me whenever I get into trouble. On the whole it was a wonderful experience.
How about your other co-stars?
Mandy Takhar played a key character named Maya. Her role gives a twist to the story. Ramki garu gave re-entry into films with this film. Similarly Nasser garu also played a good role.
Your previous film 'Sakuni' is on political backdrop. It's learnt that this film also deals with politics. What is the similarity between the two?
As said earlier 'Biriyani' is a story of two friends unlike 'Sakuni' which is a political satire movie. While my character has no connection with politics, Premji's character has link to it. So through these two characters, the director tried to tell what kind of impact show on our lives due to politics.
Your brother Suriya sang a song and you followed his trend. Could you share that experience with us?
It's true that my brother Suriya sang a song earlier and that was for an ad film. But before that I attempted this song. It's not an item song, but a mood song. These kind of songs used to be more in 80s and 90s. And we just tried it in this film. It's a song that involves two guys and a girl. 'Biriyani' is 100th film for Yuvan Shankar Raja. So he wanted to try out something new. Director Venkat also wanted me to sing to get a realistic feel. So I and Premji together sang the song. There were few mistakes while singing the Tamil version. But Venkat kept it as it is without making changes saying that it's natural and nice. Nonetheless we took enough care while singing in Telugu.
What kind of precautions do you take while selecting stories?
In recent times films are releasing across South India, so I feel my responsibility also increased along with it as I need to widen my market. Each director is strong in handling each element. So I ensure that I select the right director with the right story and that my roles are different from film to film.
Any plans for a straight Telugu film in near future?
Several new directors have approached me with their scripts. But I did not find a universal point in their scripts. There is lot of difference when it comes to heroism in Telugu with that of Tamil. Films with the kind of emotions in Telugu will not work in Tamil and films with heroism in Tamil will not impress the Telugu audience. So when My focus is on both the markets, I need to think about those subjects that universally acceptable.
So what is next for Karthi?
My next will be in the combination of Ranjith of 'Attakatthi' fame. This would be yet another realistic film even though there would be songs and fights in it. Story is based on North Chennai much alike my first film 'Malligadu' but not on village backdrop.
One last question. Of late many heroes are into production. Do you also have plans to enter into production?
I tried to produce a film earlier but it did not materialize. As of now I don't have any plans. But I may consider making a small budget film in future if any good story inspires me.
