Exclusive! My greatest takeaway of 50 years in showbiz is that I am seen as a versatile actor: Saikumar

A career in showbiz spanning five decades in itself is no mean feat. But when you are still going strong after 50 years of donning grease paint for the stage or screen, as the case may be, then that speaks volumes of the artistry of the person. Veteran actor Saikumar, who has an enviable body of work across Kannada, Tamil and Telugu films is at this stage right now. Next year marks 50 years since he first took the stage, and he continues to entertain us with a wide variety of roles – some run-of-the-mill and others that he takes great pride in. In his landmark 50th year, Saikumar also made baby steps into the OTT space with his first-ever web series, the Telugu show, Gaalivaana, in which he is paired with Radhika Sarathkumar. In a conversation with OTTplay, the actor spoke about his years in the industry, how he picks roles and the efforts he makes to not repeat himself.

“My focus has always been on doing justice to the script. In my career so far, I may have done about 100 films as hero across languages, and even though I became a household name thanks to Agni IPS from Police Story, I have tried to do different roles. And then, from RangiTaranga the trajectory changed again, but it was never monotonous. Filmmakers now know that Sai can do anything,” says Saikumar.

Excerpts from a conversation with the veteran actor…

You have an interesting mix of films with known actors and newbies. How do you go about picking these movies and roles?

Normally, if I like the character offered to me, it doesn’t matter who else is in the film, whether he is a big star, or absolute novice. Recently, I had done a film called SR Kalyana Mantapa in Telugu, in which I played father to the hero, who is a newcomer. A popular filmmaker then asked me how and why I give my 100% to such films also. I just laughed and told him that as an actor, my job is to do justice to the role given to me, irrespective of how the film turns out eventually. I can’t pick films based on the star power of the cast or the crew or the budget, for that matter. Sometimes, it is the so-called smaller films that take you by complete surprise with its impactful content. Like, for instance, RangiTaranga… This was a film that no one expected to be successful or get the international acclaim it did eventually. In fact, at an event that I attended in Mangaluru after RangiTaranga, I had said that Saikumar the hero was born in Karnataka (Police Story), but that Saikumar the actor was reborn in Malenadu (RangiTaranga). I have been immensely blessed to work with technicians and actors across generations. This is the 25th year since Police Story and the 50th since my debut on stage, way back in 1972.

Even after all these years, I still have the urge within me to keep at it. The best part of being an actor is that after each role, you feel that you could have done better. When you are on set, though, it is about satisfying the director first, because it is a film/story that he has spent months or sometimes years to write. You have to respect his vision and give him what he demands. Thankfully, these days, especially with new-age filmmakers, I have noticed that they ask me not to repetitive and try something different, which is refreshing and challenging for me as an artiste.

Having said this, I must add that there is a method to choosing roles, especially if it is a cop character. If it is a routine cop role, I reject those films. In fact, recently I got a narration from a newbie Kannada director to play the heroine’s father, who happens to be a police officer. The focus, I understand, is on the relationship dynamic and the emotional drive between father and daughter. Something like this, which is not routine, is what appeals to me.

You have two upcoming Kannada releases, Avatara Purusha and Ombatthane Dikku, both of which announced dates (Dec 10 and 31 respectively) and were then postponed…

In Avatara Purusha, I play Ram Jois, an Ayurvedic practitioner, who firmly believes in the healing properties of natural elements and nature itself. The film, although a comedy at heart, given that it has Sharan in the lead, also dabbles with black magic in its storyline. Avatara Purusha was supposed to release in two parts, three months apart, but the makers decided to push it ahead from the proposed December 10 date because it was too close on the heels of director Suni’s film Sakath, which was still in theatres. I also heard from sources that the team was evaluating box-office statements for big Kannada films, as the buzz in the industry is that popular Tamil and Telugu movies have been eating up a sizeable chunk of collections

I am a villain with ethics in Ombatthane Dikku, which was supposed to release on December 31, but producer-director Dayal Padmanabhan has decided to push it ahead into the new year.

It appears that you have a lot of good roles coming up in Kannada cinema….

Another character that I am looking forward to is in RJ Rohitt’s directorial debut, Rowdy Fello. Audiences will fall in love with my character, which has a lot of fun as well as serious notes. I play a psychiatrist in the film, in which Urvashi ma’am is the hero’s mother. She approaches me about the son and the narrative then follows these three characters. It has a good message for society.

I have also done a film called Dilmaar with Chandramouli, who was the writer of KGF. This film has Ram Gowda and Aditi Prabhudeva in the lead. I did a very romantic villain, which I thoroughly enjoyed playing, as such characters need a lot of expressions and voice modulations. He is also in the habit of singing songs.

In Made in Bengaluru, I am a Telugu-speaking don, who has henchmen that look like WWE wrestlers. He is a cool cucumber, who is a loan shark but doesn’t take any documents as guarantee because he has his style to get people to repay him.

There are a couple of other interesting projects in Kannada, which I have enjoyed working on.

What about work in other languages?

I recently did a wonderful role in a Tamil film called Anbarivu, in which I am paired with Asha Sharath, for which we have even shot in Azerbaijan. It’s a father character, but one with a lot of swag. The film, a clean family drama, is led by Hip Hop Thamizha, Napolean sir and Vidaarth. This will be a direct-to-OTT release on Disney+Hotstar on January 7,” says Saikumar.

As for my Telugu web show, it is very interesting, and is a collaboration of Northstar Entertainment with BBC for Zee5. Working with Radhika Sarathkumar has been an absolute pleasure; she has a knack of becoming the character. I had got offers earlier too, but they did not appeal to me because there was nothing new in it. Gaalivaana is based on a European show, but the makers have adapted it for Telugu audiences.

Is there anything still on your wish list as an actor?

Of course. I would love to play a role like that of the Professor in Money Heist, or Walter White in Breaking Bad.