My motto is to not take success to my head, or failure to my heart: Ganesh

Kannada star Ganesh’s last film outing seems to be one among the latest films that have got the Kannada audience back to the theatres. With Krishnam Pranaya Sakhi, Ganesh says he is thrilled to have been part of a film “that is inching towards a 50-day run. That is such a rare feat these days”. “Today, it is the quality of cinema that matters the most. It should present a theatrical experience – otherwise why should people come and watch it in cinema halls,” points out Ganesh as he talks to us about the dynamics of stories and their connection with the audience. Excerpts: ‘I look for that little spark in every script’Whenever I listen to a script, there has to be a spark that inspires me to do take it up. Krishnam Pranaya Sakhi had an interesting thread that urged the audience to engage with the story as they start hoping on behalf of the characters. The engagement is the strongest point of the film. That is what creates the magic between the story and its audience.‘I know that when a song becomes a hit, the film will also follow through’For generations together, we are used to listening to stories through songs. Take for instance Harikathe that people watch all night. So, whenever a song from my film turns out to be a hit, and as long as we have all given our best in every other department, the film will also turn out to have a good run. Dwapara became popular on all platforms in no time. The song was released on July 19, and on July 21, when I heard my own family – my wife and children – listening to the song on full volume, I knew that this one would be a hit. I was also super thrilled when the song became popular on reels. Every individual who shoots a reel is spending a lot of time on the concept, their look, their steps. We hit over seven lakh reels in a couple of days and that means so many people have spent that much time on it. After the song turned out to be a hit, it was followed by excellent choreography and cinematography in the film, and the energy followed through with the entire storytelling.‘Do not take success to your head, do not take failure to your heart’That is my mantra as an actor. Hits and flops are a part of an actor’s life. Nobody goes out there to make a bad film. Everybody wants their film to do well. But sometimes it works and sometimes it does not. There is no formula for a successful film; it is only about how a story connects to the audience. Our emotions and what is being said online should connect to people. Personally, I feel that irrespective of all that goes into the making or breaking of a film, as an actor, I must not fail my audience. I don’t ever want my audience to watch a film of mine and feel that the performance was not good. One must always stay positive too – because if all that effort does not work, we must try again. But you cannot be in a situation where you feel you did not put in enough effort or that maybe you could have done better. There are so many ideas you get when you are on location, it is your duty to give your 101 percent right there. Like Lord Krishna said, karmanye vadhikaraste ma phaleshu kadachana – this applies to those who put in effort. You could consider this as an actual existing app, that does not work without your own effort.