45 teaser promotion: When Kannada star Shivarajkumar deftly handled Aarattannan’s trick question
Social media influencer Aarattannan was at the promotional event of the upcoming film 45, featuring Shivarajkumar and Upendra and wanted to know if there was any other natural actor like Mohanlal
Last Updated: 11.49 AM, Apr 18, 2025
When the team of the upcoming Kannada film 45, including Shivarajkumar, Upendra, and director Arjun Janya headed to Kochi for the teaser promotions, both the actors, who have a fanbase in the state owing to films like Om and Jailer, there was enthusiastic response to them from the crowd that had gathered.
Shivarajkumar's choice of natural actor is...
Among them was social media influencer Aarattannnan, who was recently seen in a cameo in Mammootty’s Bazooka. A movie buff and critic, Aarattannan threw a question at Century Star Shivarajkumar, asking him to name a ‘natural actor’ like Mohanlal, given that most others, according to him, are only method actors. Shivarajkumar handled this trick question with great grace, naming the late actor Pratap Pothen as his choice of a natural actor.
When Aarattannan attempted to get Shivarajkumar talking if he thought Prakash Raj was a natural actor, the Hattrick hero refused to be drawn into it, engaging the former in a quick debate about Kamal Haasan instead. Aarattannan’s stance was that Kamal too is a method actor, which Shivarajkumar, an ardent fan of the Tamil veteran actor, refuted.
“He (Kamal Haasan) gets into all types of characters; you can take Kamal sir in any role. He is versatile,” said Shivarajkumar, even as Aarattannan interrupted him routinely with comments about Mohanlal’s greatness. “He (Mohanlal) is also amazing,” countered Shivarajkumar, which put an end to that conversation.
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WHO IS AARATTANNAN? Santhosh Varkey, better known as Aarattannan in Kerala, is a Youtuber who rose to fame with his first day first show reviews of popular films. A self-proclaimed genius, he claims to have an engineering background, who posts movie and social criticism on his handles.
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The film 45 is releasing in theatres on August 15, 2025, but the team has already begun promotions, taking the teaser to cities like Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi. The focus of the tour was to tell audiences about the universal nature of the subject which makes it an Indian film and not a Kannada film dubbed in multiple languages to get pan-India status.
Produced by Ramesh Reddy, 45 also stars Raj B Shetty in the lead, with the makers stating that the title is derived from the fact that the story takes place over a period of 45 days. Arjun had done an animated version of the film he had in mind before going on floors, which is what clicked with the producer and the cast and ensured that he had no extra shots and gave his editor very little to do.