It’s hard to describe a movie as different even when it is, because the word has been overused, says Rohitt

When the lead pair of

Buckaasura

visited

Bangalore Times

to talk about their upcoming film, it took a while for the shy

Rohitt

and Kavya Gowda to open up. But once they got talking, they shared tidbits from the movie; the brains behind it; Rohitt turning producer for the first time; Kavya’s filmy debut; their admiration for Sudeep and more. Excerpts:

Hey guys. Tell us about the movie’s unique name and the brains behind it…
Rohitt: The name Buckaasura can be split into three components — buck, which means money in English, kaasu, which means the same in

Kannada

and sura, which means a good being. So, when a good person goes blindly behind money, he becomes a demon is the underlying story. The one line concept was given to us by

Rajasimha Thadinada

, who also writes for Allu Arjun, after which director

Navneeth

and I developed a screenplay and script based on that.

Kavya, can you tell us a little about your role in your debut film?
Kavya Gowda: In the film, my character is lively, bubbly person. So far, I’ve only heard people talking about how acting in movies is very different from acting in television, and I finally got to understand exactly how they differ. I also got to act with veteran actors such as V Ravichandran sir, Sitara ma’am and even Sadhu Kokila sir, with whom I have a lot of scenes in the film.

So, do you share similarities with your on-screen character?
KG: Yes, I’m a lot like this character, and not at all like the drama-filled roles I played on small screen.
R: Speaking about drama, among men and women, most of the drama seems to come from women. At least that has been my experiences in dealing with women and their many moods.
KG: I don’t agree. I think drama and complications can arise from both genders.
R: (shakes head)

Most of the movie’s promotional activities so far have been done in colleges. Why is that?
R: We often see people defining their lives by how much money they earn and save. Even in this film, the lead character is of the opinion that money alone will earn him respect. And that happens a lot with our college kids, who graduate and go in hot pursuit of money. So when we visit colleges, we play a game which helps them understand the scenario we currently live in — we shortlist few students who take turns to go inside a glass box filled with money, and whoever is able to grab the most in 10 seconds, we offer to pay their tuition. If you draw parallels to real life, we all are behind money, and just like the students inside the box, we are under stress to grab as much as we can, while our struggles are a source of entertainment for those around us. We can’t get too preachy with students, so we play the game instead to make them understand it.

Rohitt, Buckaasura marks your debut as a producer as well. How’s it been?
R: I never thought I would become a producer in my lifetime but here I am, out of necessity. A producer who was supposed to come on board backed out due to certain reasons. My team had already put in six months of hard work and was almost ready to shoot, so I couldn’t let them down and stepped in. My respect for producers has gone up a lot after taking up this responsibility and going through the challenges that they go through.

You also spoke about your interest in politics the last time you met us here. Has your interest waned or are you still on track with those ambitions?
When I started my movie career, I had given myself a nine-year timeframe to turn to politics, and I’m still sticking to that. My drive to be a politician comes from the desire to see a lot of things change in our country. Instead of sitting and complaining about the way things are now, I want to start the change myself.

Both of you come from very different entertainment mediums, where you had unique personalities — RJ Rohitt was flirty on air, while Kavya and drama went hand-in hand. Has it been difficult to shake those images off?KG: The difference is perception hasn’t been much for me, except the fact that Kavya has moved from TV to films. It’s too early for me to tell.
R: For me, my on-air persona was that of a flirt, and I don’t relate to that at all in reality. Okay, at least not much. So, when people meet me, they expect me to be that person and take me lightly. It just so happens that in both my movies so far, my characters have shades of grey, so that hopefully changes people’s perceptions.

What kind of roles do you yearn to play going forward?
KG: All I want to be involved with is acting, and I don’t want to be too choosy about them at the moment. If the roles that I am being offered play an important part in the movie, that’s good enough for me. However, in future, I would love to play the role of a blind person because I feel that would challenge me the most to grow as an actor.
R: I don’t have any dream roles, but what I want to do next is get into direction. Many times, I am not able to translate what I’m thinking and I would like to gain some experience in that field.

That’s interesting. What kind of film can we expect from your stable once you turn director?
R: As a filmmaker, I just want to entertain people for two hours by giving them something unique and different. As an RJ, when I interviewed filmmakers, they all claim that their movies are different but when go watch it, they’re not. So, it’s tough to describe a movie as different even when it is, because the word has been overused and lost its essence. I’d like to cultivate this image that if it’s Rohitt’s movie, you can expect something away from the usual.

What is your favourite movie genre and which Kannada star would you like to act with in future?
R: Thrillers. As for co-stars, I haven’t thought about whom I’d love to act with, but I’d definitely like to direct Sudeep sir and Yash someday.
KG: I love romantic movies. I’ve always dreamed of acting with Sudeep sir in a film.