CAN HE BREAK THE '98 JINX?

Among the younger heroes, Srikanth is a rarity, for he’s made it big in films without a godfather to prop him up. Starting off as a small-time villain, he came into the limelight with the success of One By Two, following it up with smashing hits like Taj Mahal, Aame, Pellisandadi and Vinodam. Last year, he even joined the exclusive big heroes league, of actors with five superhits or more, thanks to films like Egire Pavuramma, Aahvanam and Maa Nanaku Pelli. A tete-a-tete with the sought-after hero:

After a windfall year in 1997, when you had five hits, you’ve started ’98
on a sober note, with the two average grossers, Uyala and Nidhi.
Are you disappointed?
I am. It’s been a huge blow, but I’m not finished yet. I’m confident of getting out of this so-called jinx unscathed. I have quite a few interesting releases coming up this year, you know.

Once you turned hero, you stopped signing negative roles altogether. Why then did you sign Aahvanam,
where you played a character with negative shades?
Simply because I hadn’t played such a character before. He was a nice guy, although he’d go to any lengths to make money. In that sense, he was definitely a negative character, especially if you compare him with the conventional hero’s roles in Telugu films. The role helped me prove I didn’t want to be identified with a particular image, that I was keen to play a variety of roles. And judging from the film’s popularity, I think audience approves.

Will you be working with new directors again, considering that your films like Hello I Love You and Nidhi failed to live up to expectations?
Well, why not? Despite its fate at the box-office, Hello I Love You remains as one of my best films. It was indeed a beautiful film. But I agree, I shall have to be careful about signing films with debutant directors. From now on, I’ll sign a film with a new director only if the producer’s big, or if the producer is new, I’ll insist on a senior director.

Last year, you did Egire Pavurama which Chakravarthy and now you are working with Upendra in Kanyadanam. Two hero films seem to be a good idea, but why aren’t we getting more such multi-starrers?
I don’t have any set rules for signing two-hero films. I sign films after just a discussion on my role. It was nice working with Chakravarthy, and I’m enjoying working with Upendra. It’s true that two-hero films fetch good money for producers, but there are very few multi-starrers being made in Telugu. This is because, unless the director is careful about the characterisation, even slight imbalances could adversely affect the prospects of the film. The credit for the success of multi-starrers in any language should go to the director.

When you turned hero, did you ever think you would be so successful?
Believe it or not, I did. I was confident about success because I had faith in my talent. As you’re probably aware, I quit signing negative roles the moment I signed my first film as hero, People’s Encounter. When my first release as a hero, One-by Two became a hit, I knew my gamble had paid off.

What was it like, working with thespian A Nageswara Rao in Pandagaa?
Pleasant and memorable. I learnt a lot from him. His dedication and concentration is amazing. From the beginning, I used to deliver my lines very fast, particularly in the emotional scenes, which resulted in mis-matching of lines and expressions at times. He advised me to slow down, to deliver my lines with expressions to match. It’s an advice I can never forget.

Why haven’t you signed any film in Kannada after your successful film Henti Helludare Kelubeku?
I played the same character I did in its Telugu version Pellam Chepite Vinali. But I refused other Kannada offers because I wanted to concentrate on Telugu films.

Do you think you could have been successful sooner
if you’d had a godfather?
Perhaps, but I’m glad I don’t have a godfather to back me up. Now, whatever I’ve achieved is strictly on my merit, and I am proud of it. Making it on your own gives a unique feeling, which can’t quite be expressed in words.

Why did you accept female-oriented films like Kanyadanam and Aahvanam, where the heroines have author-backed roles?
I don’t know why other stars decline offers in female-oriented films. I like to take them on as a challenge, and I proved my point, garnering good feedback from the audience for my performance in Aahvanam. The character in the film is definitely important and it has its own significance eventhough the heroine walks away with all the sympathy in the end. Being an actor, I want to be associated with socially-relevant films and this film propagated a strong message.

Tell us about your forthcoming films.
The immediately forthcoming ones are Gilligajalu and Pandagaa. The film for which I am shooting now is Kanyadanam, my seventh with director EVV Satyanarayana. So far, I have acted in four films with SV Krishna Reddy and our fifth, Magamasam, commences in June. Apart from this, I am doing Suprabhatham with Bheemaneni Srinivasa Rao and one each for Raghavendra Film Corp, Muthyala Subbiah and Kodi Ramakrishna. I am working with the best of directors and I hope to have a successful run this year too.