Chitrakatha introduces yet another engineer as actor in Kannada films

If you were to take a quick look at the academic backgrounds of many young actors in the Kannada film industry, it is interesting to note just how many of them left engineering behind to pursue their showbiz dreams. From Rakshit Shetty, Dhananjaya, Suraj Gowda, Rishi and Aravinnd Iyer, among others, there are quite a few who have made a mark for themselves in Sandalwood. Buoyed by this, yet another engineer is all set to begin his innings in the Kannada film industry with this week’s Chitrakatha. Sujeeth Rathod, the lead actor of the film, holds a Masters degree in Engineering and is now set to debut.

Destination Sandalwood
In college, I used to be active in theatre, and experimented with filmmaking during my masters in the UK. On my return to India, I auditioned for roles and landed the lead in a film called Ee, but it did not take off. The art director of the film, Yashasvi Balaaditya, and I shared a great rapport, so, when he began working on the script of Chitrakatha, we decided to work on it together. We finalised the script and began shooting in 2018. Not long after, I met with an accident, owing to which I was out of action for a while.

Playing Rana
In the film, I play Rana, an aspiring director who wants to have the last word everywhere. This not only becomes a hindrance in his career, but also paves the way for his beau to dump him. Upset, he goes on a drinking binge and ends up sleeping in a

cemetery

. Things take a dark turn when an

Aghori

starts chasing him and even tries to kill him. What transpires from there on, forms the rest of the narrative. It was a challenge to play Rana, as he is the polar opposite of how I am in real life. But since I was involved in the scripting process, I got to understand the character better and that helped me play the role onscreen.