Sujay Shastry talks about his directorial debut

He is a singer, who became an RJ, theatre and TV actor and comedian and is, therefore, a popular name among Kannada audiences. And now, with

Gubbi Mele Brahmastra

, which hits theatres on Independence Day, Sujay Shastry presents his first attempt at direction. “I am basically a singer, who has performed at concerts. I was a disciple of (late)

Raju Ananthaswamy

, and gave up on music after he passed away a decade ago. In fact, I tell people that if he were still alive, I would have never become an actor,” says Sujay.
Gubbi Mele Brahmastra is his fifth as an actor and one that he decided to direct because, it is in a genre that he excels in — comedy. “Turning director was not a planned move, it just happened, and became an opportunity to do something new. The added challenge was that I was acting in the film as the lead hero’s (played by

Raj B Shetty

) friend, and just because I was in a scene didn’t mean that I could assume all was OK and move on. Thankfully, I had help in the direction department from friends like MG Srinivas, with whom I worked on Srinivasa Kalyana and Birbal, among others,” says the filmmaker.
The film, he adds, is a

dark comedy

based on a one-line idea by Pradeep BV that Sujay developed into a script. “I have repeatedly been told that comedy is my forte, which I will happily accept, but that doesn’t mean that making people laugh is all I do. I can do serious roles as well. I am not offended by being typecast as a comedy guy, and have attempted to explore the genre with Gubbi Mele Brahmastra. Having Raj in the lead is a bonus. He elevates the humour in his own style —be it his reaction to a situation or dialogue delivery, etc., ” he says.
Sujay adds that he has not made the film with any particular intention. “Every film cannot have a social message. Gubbi Mele Brahmastra is only meant to entertain,” he signs off.