Rakshitha is the boss on all fronts: Prem

Change is a constant for director-turned-actor Prem. After having directed many films and acted in some, Prem has learnt that it is important to change movies with time and the taste of its audiences. And so, the actor, who has never adhered to the stereotypical expectations of a hero, decided to take on a different avatar for his upcoming film, DK. We spoke to Prem about his journey as an actor, his character in DK, and his son Soorya’s cinematic debut…
You have directed many films, but how has your journey as an actor been? It’s been good, because acting is very easy.Direction, on the other hand, is a very risky and stressful job. A director invests all his energy on ensuring that his project turns out well and is received as he envisioned. But, it’s not like that for artists. If one project doesn’t work for them, they easily move on to the next. So, I believe the true hero of a film is its director and then, the script. However, as an actor and director, I’ve learnt a lot from my past movies. I directed my first few acting projects and realized that it leads to a lot of confusion and bad judgment. Also, the kind of realistic cinema that I attempted to make was not received well by audiences. I wanted to present myself as a hero who audiences can relate to — more like one among them — but they wished to see someone they aspire to be. Over time, I realized that people want to watch commercial cinema with fantasy elements. So, for DK, not only did we include entertaining elements, but I also worked on my look. I lost 11 kilos and worked out rigorously to achieve the stereotypical ‘hero’ look. However, I am still not great at dancing.
We hear that elements in DK are very similar to your real life. Is that true? Yes, to a certain extent. A prominent element of the hero’s character is inspired by one of my qualities. When director Vijay Hampali approached me, he said that he wanted me to play up the fact that I’m frank. I don’t mince words and don’t hesitate to call a spade a spade. And, I’m also quick to apologize if I’m wrong, but I don’t believe in hiding or twisting facts, just to please others. So, my character has a slightly more exaggerated version of this quality of mine.
What was it like seeing your son in front of the camera for the first time? It was great to see Surya in front of the camera. He’s a natural. While getting him ready for the shoot, we told him that his costume would be exactly like mine. After he got ready and stood in front of the camera, he noticed that I was wearing a watch and he was not. He got angry and refused to shoot for almost half an hour, which is how Rakshita often reacts, till we gave him a watch. It was quite cute. Then, before the shot, the dance master taught him steps, while his mother and Vijay kept telling him what to do. I was quiet throughout. Then, he looked at me and said, “I know what to do, why are they constantly instructing me?” And once the camera started rolling, he gave his best in the very first shot.
Have things changed at home after Rakshitha joined politics? And what is she like as a producer? No, nothing has changed after she joined politics. But what’s interesting to see is how Rakshitha manages different situations now. When she is at home she is extremely pleasant and talks to all the ministers who visit in a rather cool manner, but when she is in a crowd, she is rough and authoritative. Since she has roamed the entire state while campaigning, she knows how to handle a mob very well. While she is the boss on all fronts — as she can balance work, home and a social life very well — she was absolutely non-interfering as the producer of DK. She never came on set, except when our son had to shoot. However, we did casually discuss the film at home as artists.
There was news of Rakshitha's comeback. Will we see you together on screen soon? I would be happy to share screen space with her, but, right now, she is not interested in acting. She was offered to work on the Kannada remake of How Old Are You, but she refused. There was a plan to have her feature in a song in My Name is Byre Gowda, but since the film got delayed due to Ambareesh’s ill health, we have not worked on it yet. We’ll have to wait and see if things fall into place.
What was it like seeing your son in front of the camera for the first time? It was great to see Soorya in front of the camera. He’s a natural. While getting ready for the shoot, we told him that his costume would be exactly like mine. After he got ready and stood in front of the camera, he noticed that I was wearing a watch, but he was not. He got angry and refused to shoot for almost half-an-hour — which is how Rakshitha often reacts — till we gave him a watch. It was quite cute. Then, before the shot, the dance master taught him the steps, while his mother and Vijay kept telling him what to do. I was quiet throughout. Then, he looked at me and said, “I know what to do, why are they constantly instructing me?” He gave his best in the very first shot once the camera started rolling.
Have things changed at home after Rakshitha joined politics? What is she like as a producer? No, nothing has changed after she joined politics. But what’s interesting is how Rakshitha handles different situations now. When she is at home, she is extremely pleasant and talks to all the ministers in a rather cool manner, but when she is in a crowd, she is rough and authoritative. Since she has roamed the entire state while campaigning, she knows how to handle a mob very well. While she is the boss on all fronts — since she can balance work, home and a social life very well — she was completely non-interfering as the producer of DK. She never came on set, except when our son had to shoot. However, we did discuss the film casually at home as artists.
There was news of Rakshitha’s comeback. Will we see you together on screen soon? I will be happy to share screen space with her, but, right now, she is not interested in acting. She was offered the Kannada remake of the Malayalam film How Old Are You, but she refused. She was also to feature in a song in My Name is Byre Gowda, but that hasn’t happened yet since the film has been delayed. We’ll have to wait and see if things fall in place.