Exclusive! Kunchacko Boban: My politics has always been about humanity and not any political party

Kunchacko Boban has been forging ahead in his 40s. In the past five years, the actor has completely reinvented himself in terms of his characters and movies - an endeavour that he is sustaining through his latest ventures Bheemante Vazhi, a perverse role from what the audience expects, and Ottu/Rendagam, which will mark his Tamil debut almost 25 years after his entry in the Malayalam film industry. The experience that he has gained over the years has also aided in his path of evolution as an actor, he says.

In an exclusive interview with OTTplay, the Nayattu and Nizhal actor talks about his upcoming films, working with Arvind Swami and if he would opt for direct-to-OTT releases in the future.

Bheemante Vazhi is scheduled to hit theatres on December 3, exactly a day after a massive film like Marakkar releases. So, the makers must have a lot of confidence in the content of the movie.

The first reason, contrary to the title, is that Bheemante Vazhi is a small film. It’s a humour-laced movie based on a true incident and is inspired by real-life people. Its director Ashraf (Hamza) and scriptwriter Chemban (Vinod Jose) initially approached me for another film, which had a dark and serious subject. I told them I was doing consistent films in that genre and we can work on that later. That’s when Chemban talked about an incident in his friend’s life and I found that interesting.

Shooting Bheemante Vazhi was also fun. It has me in a role that I haven’t done before; my character is not that ‘neat’. Also, it was always planned as a theatrical release. After theatres reopened, there has been a positive response for movies like Kurup and Jan-E-Man and that’s when we had fixed the December 3 release date. It just so happened that a big film like Marakkar is releasing a day before. There’s this saying in Malayalam, ‘Vazha nannayumbol cheerayum koodi nannayum’. So, let’s also reap some benefit out of it. We know our film is not at all a competition for Marakkar. But we have witnessed that if the audience likes the content, they will ensure it runs long in theatres. So, we are confident about what we have made and the viewers’ response.

As you said, from the trailer of the film too, your character isn’t the gentlemanly-type, contrary to how you are perceived off screen?

(Laughs) It’s a character that is inspired by real-life people and so, we have only shown what we can to the audience. Ashraf had said in an interview that my character Sanju isn’t that well-behaved in this film. He has a couple of flings and during the pre-production itself, I had a clear idea about his personality traits. It’s a film where I want to give the audience something different from what they usually expect from me. The movie itself is about a path and while solving that issue, the character introspects the way he has been leading his life. Satire and humour form the base of Bheemante Vazhi.

Some of the recent characters that you have done – be it in Anjaam Pathiraa or Nayattu – deal with their emotional turmoil. At this age, do you understand these roles better and is that the reason you have been choosing such characters often?

I think I have been fortunate to get those roles. Through experience, we realise that some things aren’t like how we had understood them earlier. This helps in analysing situations and roles without going in with our preconceived notions. The age and experience help me prepare better and understand the characters, while performing them by inculcating these nuances, knowingly and sometimes even unknowingly. For instance, Nayattu was shot in sync sound and 90% of the film was shot in the sequence of the storyline. So, the evolution of the character in the film was natural because of the ambience that was created and the order of scenes. It was the first time in my career that I had experienced such a method of filmmaking.

Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam’s director Senna Hegde, with whom I have committed a film (Padmini), talks excitedly about Nayattu and the character in it. So, I believe if the audience has taken note of the role, it’s because of the nuances I could bring in through my experience, the movie’s storyline, the way the film was made and the entire team’s effort. It’s a collective endeavour and that’s what cinema is about.

In 2022, you will complete 25 years in the industry, and you have worked with veteran filmmakers as well as the new crop of directors, who bring in their unique perspectives to a storyline. How much does collaborating with the latter group help you grow as an artiste?

The reason we as species survive is because we are capable of adapting and so, it’s important for me to evolve based on the changing scenarios of the industry and filmmaking. When new directors enter the industry, I try to understand their thought process and journey with them through their movies. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t; but a trial-and-error method is part of the process. We have to try our best and leave the rest to God and the audience.

Lately, you have been part of films like Nayattu and the upcoming movie Pada. Is it intentional on your part to choose films that make strong political statements?

Firstly, my politics has always been humanity and not about any political party. Be it religion or politics, it’s been said that they are created for the good of the people. But right now, it’s rare that these benefit the society. We have been witnessing religions or political parties trying to tarnish each other. Instead of that, the aim should be to co-operate and work for the betterment of the entire society. So, when that is not happening, we can make a political statement through our movies, without any bias. I believe it should be seen from a humanitarian perspective and not through any political, religious or caste-based bias.

Talking about collaborations, you have just finished working with Arvind Swami in Ottu (Rendagam in Tamil). It’s a film for which you have been travelling a lot together. How was it shooting with him?

I am a huge Arvind Swami fan; even today, if you watch Roja or Bombay, they still have that freshness about them – be it the romance or the songs. Since he made his grand comeback after a sabbatical, he has been doing great characters. Recently, when he essayed MGR in Thalaivi, you couldn’t see Arvind Swami in it and as an actor, that’s a huge success. From what I understood, he is extremely selective when it comes to picking films. I have seen him say ‘no’ to films with big directors from Tamil and Bollywood. He is that choosy.

Also, he does a lot of homework for his characters. Ask him anything about MGR, he could tell you within seconds. I haven’t done that much study for a character and it’s something that we could learn from. He is also a cool person, who is easy to gel. He has no starry airs. He considered me a friend and on days that I used to go out, he would ask me why I didn’t ask him to tag along.

What can you tell us about the movie, directed by Fellini TP?

It’s my first bilingual; we have shot it simultaneously in Malayalam and Tamil. It’s the most expensive movie in my career. It was filmed in Mumbai, Goa, Mangalore and Karwar over a period of nine months. I am very excited about the film, which is a thriller and an entertainer. Ottu is a project that can be called a pan-Indian movie because the subject can be placed anywhere. Telugu actress Eesha Rabba plays the heroine, Aadukalam Naren is part of the cast and Jackie Shroff plays another important role in the movie.

It’s a film, in which you have a different get-up too. That’s something that you have been doing for the past few films. So, in terms of physical transformation for characters, how much work do you put in for that?

I am giving more than my 100% - physically or emotionally. Be it Dr Suresh Rajan from Virus, Dr Anwar Hussain in Anjaam Pathiraa, Praveen Michael in Nayattu, John Baby in Nizhal, Sanju in Bheemante Vazhi or my character in Ottu, there are a lot of changes in terms of their looks and body language. I do that within my limits organically and I enjoy that process.

None of your films as of now have been direct-to-OTT releases and yet Nayattu and Nizhal, when they were released on streaming services after their theatrical run, won huge acclaim. Could we expect you to be part of OTT only releases anytime soon?

Even those who have opted for direct-to-OTT releases want their movies to be shown in theatres. The response of audiences in cinema halls is entirely different. A movie is truly a success when people enjoy it in theatres. But cinema is art as well as business with huge amounts of money involved. So, during the current circumstance, we can release a movie in theatres only if it’s strong content-wise and also commercially viable. When theatres were shut, OTTs provided a relief.

During the pandemic, among the top 10 movies that were streaming on OTTs, the first five were Malayalam films. So, our industry has provided quality-based entertainment that we can all be proud of. OTTs have guaranteed that our content reaches other language-speaking audiences.

Recently, I went to an award function for South Indian languages and we could feel the respect and value given to Malayalam movies. On the stage, people were lauding the quality of our film that released during the pandemic and I felt proud. I think OTTs are the reason for presenting us those moments. But at the same time, everyone who is part of a film would prefer a theatrical release.

You are again turning a producer for Mahesh Narayanan’s upcoming directorial Ariyippu, which also has you in the lead. What can you say about the movie?

I can’t reveal anything about it. But it’s a movie that I am really excited about - as a producer, actor and a viewer. It’s something that I will be proud about, undoubtedly. Mahesh has been routinely updating me about the progress in the project, and we will be announcing further updates about the film soon.

Also read: Exclusive! Indrajith Sukumaran on working with brother Prithviraj and Murali Gopy in Rathish Ambat's Theerpu