Actor Sandeep Kishan is treating his new film MichaelDirected by Ranjith Jayakodi, this will be his most special film till date. The gangster drama starring Sandeep, Vijay Sethupathi, Gautham Menon, Divyansh Kaushik, Anasuya Bharadwaj and Varalakshmi Sarathkumar will hit the theaters on February 3 in Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam. “Not just the story, the visual narrative will appeal to a wider audience,” Sudeep says confidently during a conversation at his residence in Hyderabad.
Michael His has been a labor of love for almost three years. The idea for this film came from Sandeep and his team and they approached Ranjith Jayakodi, who directed Tamil films. Puriyatha Puthir, Ispade Rajavum Idhaya Raniyam And Yarukkum Angel, Sandeep calls Ranjith’s writing and direction style “raw and original”.
Sandeep recalls, “On one particularly bad day I asked myself if this was the end of my career, what films would I leave behind for the audience to remember me by. There weren’t many. He started analyzing what worked for him and what didn’t. important films like Prasthanam, Gundelo Godari, Venkatadri Express, D For Dopidi And routine love story in telugu, managram in Tamil, and noise in the city in Hindi and a few more that he was proud of.
New Beginning
When some of the projects that he had put his trust in didn’t shape up as expected, he decided to restart his career with a fresh perspective. Michael It’s the first step in that direction, he says. Ranjith worked on the idea given to him and came up with a ‘genius’ script. If I have to describe his ingenuity, I would say that his narrative style reflects the brilliance of director Selvaraghavan. at work Michael Has changed me as an actor and a person.
Sandeep believes after watching the first cut of the film recently Michael Will introduce the audience to Ranjit’s remarkable vision. “I’m a fan,” he says. The actor also believes that this rediscovery will change how people see him as an actor. Will the film usher in Sandeep Kishan 2.0? “I hope so,” he replies.
Sandeep Kishan in ‘Michael’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
During the different lockdowns, Sandeep worked out to look slim, fit. Ranjith lost 10 kgs to fit the look he wanted for his character. Nagarjuna Akkineni’s slim, wiry form was a reference point in Ram Gopal Varma’s look Shiv, Sandeep wanted to break away from his loverboy image, which he feels can be limiting after a point: “In cinema, people try to put you in a category and later you start questioning who you are. What are you able to do? I wanted to rebuild myself.
The lean look that Sandeep gave in the 2021 film A1 Express was a step towards Michael In terms of fit. “I don’t usually enjoy working. I had to Michael, For a portion of the film, I lived on egg whites and black coffee for about 18 days, after which my right leg started hurting. This is not healthy and I would not recommend this method to anyone. I was in the mood to push myself.
when asked whether Michael A gangster origin story, Sandeep says that the audience can expect the unexpected. “The story traverses through two eras and has a lot of drama. It is difficult for me to explain the film in a few lines. maybe i can say it’s like Prasthanam Served up with a high-energy drink and lots of action. The action is raw. With Dev Katta, Praveen Sattaru, Lokesh Kanagaraj, Raj and DK and a few others I have worked with, Ranjith has an original voice as a director.
styles and languages
As he brings up the subject of these directors, it is imperative to ask him whether it was a conscious choice or a coincidence that some of his Telugu films in recent years have been a cocktail of mainstream elements in an attempt to please the box office while Tamil like Managram (nagaram) in telugu) or hyperlink movie kasada thapara There have been more genre-specific and roots. “My journey has been a confusing mix of everything and it is hard to categorize,” he says, explaining that in the early years of his film career, he got to be a part of films made by directors with strong voices in different languages. Got an opportunity to ,
Divyansh Kaushik and Sudeep Kishan in ‘Michael’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
runaway comic hits Venkatadri Express It opened up more box office earning potential and Sandeep says he had a childlike enthusiasm to work with big banners. “from them, tiger did well. tiger And managram Came to me about the same time. i got the story managram For three Telugu producers who liked the idea but were not sure about making it. SR Prabhu took it up for Tamil.
trial run
Post tiger, some films did not do well; Sandeep admitted that he took up a few projects to survive in the industry. Furthermore, he says that the notion of nepotism was in place since his uncles – cinematographers Chhota K Naidu and Shyam K Naidu – were established names in Telugu cinema. “I am not a product of nepotism. I moved to Hyderabad from Chennai at the age of 20. It’s not like I lived with my uncles. He introduced me to a few people, but beyond that I had to prove my worth. I have been acting for 14 years and now I am not worried about promoting nepotism. When people said that I am alive in Telugu cinema because of my uncles, I worked in Tamil and Hindi to prove them wrong. Pausing, he says his love for Hyderabad has only grown over the years. “Every relationship I’ve made in this city fills me with a sense of accomplishment.”
There was also an assumption that he interfered with the script. Sandip points out that the dynamics have changed and actors today are more involved in creative discussions. At times he felt that there was a mismatch between the script brought to him and what was happening on the sets. He says it has been a learning curve. After some of his films failed, he went through a low phase. “There was a time when I didn’t know what my next film would be. I was at home, put on weight and didn’t feel like doing anything. My nine-member staff surrounded me to support me. My fans, some of whom I know well, and many others on social media whom I have never met, cheered for me. It was reassuring and helped me get over that phase.”
Vijay Sethupathi and Gautham Menon
While production houses mooted projects and looked for directors and actors a few years back, Sandeep says collaboration today happens on many levels and there is mutual respect between people who come together for a project. he quotes Michael As an example for which he took the initiative. She and actor Vijay Sethupathi were friends from the beginning of their respective careers. “bridge” Anna plays an important role. I was clapping when I saw the movie recently. We have known each other since the beginning of our careers and when we asked her to be a part of this film, she graciously agreed.
Sudeep Kishan and Vijay Sethupathi on the sets of ‘Michael’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Michael He has also collaborated with Gautham Menon, in whose team he worked as an assistant director for the Suriya-starrer varnam ayiram (sun son krishnan in Telugu) before debuting as an actor. He kept in touch with Menon and worked in his productions. nargasooran, which is yet to be released. In the role of Gautam Sir Michael It’s very grey. He is one of the biggest pioneers of our cinema today.”
On set, Ranjith and Gautham Menon would discuss cinema on an intellectual level and Sandeep, at times, felt out of place: “I felt someone should play ‘Jai Balayya’ to lighten the mood now “
Michael’s The teaser, which was released in October 2022, helped generate buzz in film trade circles. In turn, this made Sandeep’s future projects more viable. Sandeep will be next seen in V Anand’s Telugu fantasy entertainer Oru Peru Baravacona, friend (Tamil film adaptation teddy), captain miller Directed by Arun Matheswaran, starring Dhanush The Family Man 3 series, among other projects. He will also produce some films. He also has a project in the pipeline with his friend Lokesh Kanagaraj, which is in demand across the country. cathy And Vikram,
to go across the country with MichaelSandip says Telugu cinema has reached a point where filmmakers and actors are willing to push the boundaries: “Sudheer Babu’s to hunt, Nani’s next film Dussehra All are interesting and great projects. we saw how nikhil Kartikeya 2 was recognized. SS Rajamouli is showing us the way and it is our responsibility to at least try and make films that can reach a wider audience.