I’m taking my films more seriously now: Kunchacko Boban

I’m tHailing from a family of filmmakers it was only natural that Kunchacko Boban took to acting, which he did reluctantly; but the actor took a surprising mid-career break and then went on to make one of the biggest comebacks seen in Malayalam cinema. Kochi Times catches up with the dynamic actor, as he’s getting ready for his next film Cousins. Here are some excerpts from an interview.
Was your entry into films always there on the cards? Not at all! I wasn’t interested in the film industry.My father, grandfather, uncle and granduncle were all part of the film industry, but I didn’t want to have anything to do with the industry. The first commercial hit in Malayalam films was Umma and that was from our family production house. We also had many other commercial hits, but later things changed. It was during my childhood that our films started failing and we went through a bad phase financially. All this made me want to stay away from films. We had a studio called Udaya Studios, but I was the least bit interested in maintaining it. I even told my father to sell it off. I didn’t even want to have anything to do with the rights of the films we had. That was the early me!
How then did films happen? It was my father who insisted I give it a shot. If I wasn’t happy, I could give it all up and move on. That was the deal. I told him, “I’m doing this only for you!” and did it. The film was Aniyathipravu and it went on to become a blockbuster. I was in my final year of my bachelor’s degree and even then I wasn’t really interested in films. I took one year off to complete my studies. I finished my BCom; got a first class, and then the second film happened followed by a string of films. My films were mainly campus oriented, romantic ones where I mostly played the lover boy types. There were many hits and a few failures as well.
What made you take a break from films? By 2004 my films were not doing well. Even I was not excited with the roles I was playing and the audience were the least excited. (Laughs) So I decided to take a break. I took a two-year break, during which I got married. In these two years, I realised the love people had for me through the films I did. My wife also realised this and encouraged me to get back to films.
How did you begin your second innings? My comeback was a planned effort. I took it slow and steady. I did not want to become a success overnight. I knew by then that success that comes easily, goes away easily. I wanted to make a strong comeback and planned for that. During my break, I used to spend time with Lal Jose, Benny P Nayarambalam, Shafi and other film guys. Lal Jose is the one who encouraged me to reinvent myself. They were the buddies who advised me.
I did small roles, multi-starrers and even acted in women-centric films and then the break came with the film Gulumaal that I did with Jayasurya, which was a hit. It was a small budget film that was a laugh riot; it was the first film in which I tried humour. It suited my personality and my body language. Till then people thought that I couldn’t do comedy roles at all as I was stuck with the chocolate boy image.
Then I did Elsamma Enna Aankutty with Lal Jose and that did wonders. Even though the film was woman centric, the character of Palunni that I played was very much appreciated by film-goers. Then Traffic happened where I played a character with some grey shades. People didn’t think I could handle that kind of a role. Then Seniors happened, in which I was paired with many of my senior colleagues like Jayaramettan, Biju Menon and Manoj K Jayan. It was a campus film but with a difference. In that film I played a guy with some psychological issues and that film too was a success. All these characters I played were drastically different from the ones I used to play.
That’s how I got an image makeover. The characters, the stories and the films were all very different and I still found acceptability. I wanted very much to be an actor and not a star. I had enjoyed stardom in my first stint itself. Girls were after me, boys were jealous of me (laughs). Now things have changed. Boys started loving me and girls too liked the roles that I played. Like in the film, How Old Are You, that’s the most mature character I’ve played to date. That character, Rajeevan, is diametrically opposite to what I am in real life.
Have you changed as an actor and a person through this screen metamorphosis? Earlier, I was not interested in changing myself. I was stuck in my comfort zone. I would come to the sets; do what the director told me and leave. But nowadays, I am with a film right from the start; from the reading of the script through the making of it and even through its marketing. When I say that earlier I wasn’t ready to change myself, it applies to my physical appearance as well. I never attempted to shave off my moustache or my hair or make any other physical changes to myself.
But I did all that in my comeback films. I took off my moustache, shaved my head, and showed people my receding hairline (laughs). For my role as Palunni in Elsamma Enna Aankutty, I was made to look dull. A milkman shouldn’t be so fair and so Lalu (Lal Jose) used to make me stand under the sun, so that I get tanned.
In Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum, it was a drastic change. I went to the set on day one with long hair and a full moustache, and they decided to shave off my moustache and cut my hair short. Even I couldn’t recognise myself after that. When I came home, my wife was shocked. Some people didn’t like the change initially. But once the film was released, the look went very well with the character and I found acceptance. The film was a huge hit. So when I embraced changes, success came along with it. I am taking my films more seriously now.
What is your approach to acting now? I come to location on time. Even if my shot is not ready, I have no qualms. For me it’s a day in the office. I make this my discipline. I don’t come pre-planned to the sets. If I do that, I might get stuck. I am a complete director’s actor and depend totally on my scriptwriter and director. If they are clear about my character, I go with that. All the changes to my character have been done on the spot. I also improvise on the spot.
In your earlier phase you seem to have scored several hits with Shalini. Would you consider her as one of your best heroines? Of course, we did five films and four of them were huge success. Our pairing was loved by the audience. Aniyathipravu was a pure romantic film with family values. Nakshatratharattu, Niram and Prem Poojari followed. Niram was a wave among the youngsters, which was directed by Kamal Sir. But films with others too have done well. I have done two films with Bhavana — Dr Love and Polytechnic; three films with Namitha Pramod, who actually was a child artiste in Traffic and then Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum and Law Point; three films with Ann Augustine — Elsamma Enna Aankutty, Ordinary and Three Kings — all of which were successful.
How was it working with the superstars of M-Town, Mohanlal and Mammootty in Harikrishnans? Because of my family’s association with films for generations, I was already familiar with these two pillars of the Malayalam film industry. But I wasn’t a very serious actor in those days and acting with them was like acting with friends. Krishna, Sudheesh, Krishnaprasad and I, the young brigade then, used to play dumb charades and other games with them. They were very free with us and made us feel comfortable working with them. It’s a blessing to have shared the same screen space with these stars. I didn’t understand the value then, but now if I have to do a film with them I know how big it is. I think I am more mature now.
Can you tell us about how you met your wife and her role in your life? I met her in ’98 in Trivandrum. I was there for a shoot and was staying at a hotel. Some girls had come to the hotel to get my autograph. I came down and gave them my autograph, but one girl’s eyes locked with mine and that was Priya’s. The first song I sung was O Priya… It wasn’t O Kajal or O Aishwarya… (laughs).
Even though people don’t really believe in love at first sight, it happened to me. I asked her name and ran upstairs and tried to look at her from my window. That was the beginning. She used to call me, and remember, in those days incoming was also chargeable. I used to tell her to call me on the landline. Eventually my parents came to know about it and we decided to go to her place to ask for her hand in marriage. At that time, she was still doing her pre-degree so definitely wasn’t mature enough to get married and so I had to wait. They didn’t think that I’d wait for so long but I waited.
There must have been several girls throwing themselves at you at that time… Many girls’ names were linked with mine. I didn’t object to any of that. I had fun listening to the stories, Priya had fun hearing about them and both of us had even more fun talking about it. We finally got married in 2005. Today, my wife plays a big role in my decisions on films. She is the one who hears out my stories. She is very adept at recognising a film for its success in the theatres. And I go with her suggestions. So, not only did she get me back into films, she is today ensuring I stay there (laughs).
You have stood up for autism… Our wedding anniversary date coincided with world autism day. I didn’t know too much about autism. Not too many people I asked also knew. So I thought more awareness needed to be created around autism. I called a few of my celeb friends and along with them, my wife and I decided to spend our anniversary with autistic children. The TV crew automatically followed and in one day, a lot of awareness was created with the help of the mass media. Parents of several autistic children called to thank me for what we’d done. We have planned to do more such awareness outings apart from charitable and affordable care for autistic children. We are on the verge of starting one such set up in Sharjah.
Does your wife involve herself in your work? She played a huge role in my come back. During the two years I took off from films I felt the love of the people. The channels kept showing the films I’d done earlier. So, while people didn’t miss my screen persona, they started to enquire why I wasn’t doing films anymore. But it was mainly my wife who got me to start acting again. She felt that I should get back and that’s why I made a comeback. My wife handles not only my home, but also me and my career. She goes through the stories and advises me on what I should and shouldn’t take up.