Ahaana Krishna: Adi could be a slap on some people’s stereotypical way of thinking | Exclusive

“Even though I do interviews for my films that release once in four years, people don’t ask me, ‘where was I all this while?’,” says Ahaana Krishna, Malayalam actress, content creator and social media influencer. The latter two have also helped her “make a name for myself” and “stay relevant”, says the actor, who is now awaiting the release of her movie Adi, which is helmed by Prasobh Krishna and also has Shine Tom Chacko and Dhruvan as part of the cast.

In a candid interview with OTTplay, Ahaana talks about what appealed to her about the movie, why she doesn’t mind doing a lot of movies in her career and how she has managed to find happiness in other aspects of life in the past few years.

Also read: Adi is a social satire that will also address gender politics like our previous films: Prasobh Vijayan | Exclusive 

The shoot of Adi wrapped up in December 2020 and it's taken about 2.5 years for the film to hit theatres. As a young actor, how frustrating has the delay been?

It was a long wait. I did my first film in 2014 and in these nine years, I have waited for new films to come my way and for those to release too. So, I have waited enough that I am pretty good at waiting now. It’s not the most exciting feeling ever but I have always believed in the fact that the wait will be for something better and brighter. I have constantly had that belief and I have felt right at the end of it all.

If you look at Adi, we shot it when the pandemic was very much prevalent in our society and right now, when the film is finally releasing, we are not even thinking about COVID-19 really; everyone is going to theatres, not really wearing masks, theatres are operating at 100% occupancy and life is back to normal. If the film had been released any earlier, it couldn’t have been at a time like this. This again proves my belief that the wait was for the good. Also, it’s a Vishu release and getting a festival release for any film is definitely a positive and happy reason.

Also read: Adi release date: When, where to watch Ahaana Krishna, Shine Tom Chacko’s romantic drama 

Prasobh said that he had served as a sounding board for actors too for the past 2.5 years, but this wait will be worth it because of the character you play in the movie. What can you tell us about your role and what went into portraying her?

I play Geethika in the film and she was an exciting character right from the time I heard the narration, read the script, got to perform to now, when I get to speak about her. She is very integral in moving the story forward; it’s always exciting to get to play a good character in a good story. I did get the opportunity to contribute well for Geethika and the film. That was very exciting for me as an actor as I take my time choosing my roles because I am particular that I want to do good films.

Secondly, Geethika is extremely different from the characters I have done so far and also, how I look as a person. My team was worried if I could pull it off, but three days into the shoot, they were happy with what I was bringing to the table. It was the same for me because at the end of day when you get to do something different, it is very satisfying. Now, when the songs and teasers have been released, the audience too seem to find all of that refreshing.

Prasobh's previous films Lilli and Anweshanam as well as scriptwriter Ratheesh Ravi's Ishq have focused on gender politics. Does Adi, being a social satire, also have those elements and did they appeal to you while signing the movie?

Absolutely. Adi does speak about gender politics. I can’t say that it's the sole crux of the film, but it’s one of the things that we subtly address in the movie. It does have to do with certain stereotypical thoughts that people of a certain gender have about another gender. It could be a slap on some people’s stereotypical way of thinking. But it wasn’t the only thing that appealed to me about the film.

Adi also has a nice, realistic story that a lot of people have already experienced a million times. It’s a very relatable story told in an interesting way. Even though it’s a relatable story, I haven’t seen this being discussed in any other movie. The film also has a direction as in it is going somewhere and making sense along the way. Plus, we had a great team – from the production, director, actors to the writer, composer; so, it was just obvious that I had to say yes to it.

For a lot of young actors, it's important to have consistent releases. In your case, due to pandemic or other uncontrollable factors, there have been delays - be it Pidikittapulli, Adi or Nancy Rani. Where do you sort of draw the line of such things getting to you?

Earlier, when I was younger, it used to bother me, but now I have more clarity on what are the things that make me happy. Though being able to do good films makes me happy, there are so many other things that make me happier. For instance, having peace of mind, being able to eat great food and travelling with the people I love and just being there for them – these are things I value much more and I get to do them plenty on a daily basis. Honestly, that’s enough to keep me happy.

Even if I am professionally doing exceedingly well and the personal part of my life is a bit dull, I don’t think I would be able to sleep happily. In a situation, where things are vice versa, I would be really okay. I have been able to find that understanding over the past few years.

I genuinely don’t want to do a lot of films, and the ones I do, I want to do them with love. Out of all the films I have done, I can’t say that everything I have done, I have been able to do with love. Sometimes you choose things and it doesn’t come out the way you think it would and then you just have to look at it as work. I am an ‘all heart’ person.

I also have social media, which I call as my active revenue source. With films, I really just want to do projects that I love and I don’t mind taking time because as long as it’s wholesome, I am okay. In the meantime, thanks to social media, I have been able to make a name for myself. It’s a lovely feeling because I have been able to stay relevant. Even when I am giving an interview for a film of mine that releases once in four years, nobody is really asking me, ‘Where were you?’. It’s probably because they see me on a daily basis and I am really enjoying all the other things I am doing too – being a content creator, an influencer and being there for my family.