Kondaa actor Thrigun: I found parallels between my industry struggles and the conflicts in Konda Murali’s life

Actor Thrigun, known as Adith Arun earlier, is awaiting the release of what’s probably the most ambitious project of his career, Kondaa, on June 23, based on the controversial life of political leaders Konda Murali and his better half Konda Surekha. The film is directed by Ram Gopal Varma and produced by Sushmitha Patel. Thrigun shared his Kondaa experiences in a media interaction today.

Describing the filming experiences for Kondaa, Thrigun calls it pain and pleasure at once and said that it was his long-time desire to associate with RGV. That he knew the nieces and nephews of the filmmaker was a good excuse for him to meet RGV often. The Satya director initially felt Thrigun wouldn’t suit his brand of films given his chocolate boy looks.

Apparently, Varma asked him one day, “What kind of films do you want to do?” Thrigun, while referring to his previous film Thungabhadra, which didn’t perform too well at the box office, expressed his interest to do a full-on action film. After meeting Konda Murali one day, RGV told him that he’d found his script and that he would be reprising the role of the political leader in the film.

Kondaa is a biopic with fictional elements and revolves around two people, unlike RGV’s previous films Raktha Charithra, and Vangaveeti. “The love story of Konda Murali and Surekha was born out of a movement and blends into the film naturally. Konda sheds light on the political situation in Warangal based on several stories that Varma heard over time.”

“Konda Murali is a man who overcame many roadblocks to make a mark as a leader. I liked his story instantly. I found a parallel between his political struggles and my journey in the industry. I am trying to overcome many barriers to create an impact as an actor and I identified with his journey and the character all the more,” Thrigun stated.

Reportedly, RGV’s main advice for him was to capture the spirit of Konda Murali as a person. Those were the days when no one paid heed to the murders and rapes revolving around the marginalised community and students had to take charge of the situation, the actor mentioned. Out of the 40,50 real-life incidents in the original screenplay, they selected the best of the lot for the film.

“There’s a scene in the film where 47 bullets are fired and this is only an example. I am not sure of the film’s commercial prospects but RGV told me that it was one of his films where he stayed true to his craft. Thulasi, LB Sriram, who play the roles of my parents, and the female lead Irra Mor have done a commendable job,” said the actor, who’ll next be seen in films like Prema Desam, Mr Work From Home, Lineman, Kirayi and a Mysskin directorial too.