We were transported to the 70s while shooting for Head Bush: Sruthi Hariharan

Head Bush is making all the right noises across platforms. Sruthi, who plays Ratnaprabha, daughter of a former chief minister, in this political crime drama, chats with Bangalore Times about her comeback, playing a woman in the 70s, working with an ensemble cast and more. Excerpts:
You are making a comeback after three years. What made you accept this role?
There are three things.One, the story, which had to be made on a huge canvas and with many, many stars. Second, my character. I play the role of Ratnaprabha, daughter of former chief minister D Devraj Urs. And lastly, Dhananjaya, Daali Pictures and Agni Sreedhar. The three of them coming together is a big thing and I did not want to miss out.
Tell us about Ratnaprabha...
Ratnaprabha comes from an influential family. She was a very inspiring woman. The 70s were extremely patriarchal, way more than what we see today. And in those times, Ratnaprabha used her voice constantly to speak up against extremely powerful men. Even in such a patriarchal society, she commanded the room. Every time she gave an opinion, men around her listened and executed it. She had a huge role to play in the political game of that era, which is what Head Bush is based on.
There is an ensemble of stars in the film. How was it working with them?
It was like being in a never-ending party. On the sets, there was always some sort of entertainment going on and we all had a great time together, although it always ended up being heavy on Dhananjaya’s pocket!
How is Dhananjaya? As an actor and producer?
I have always believed that Dhananjaya is one of the most versatile actors we have in the industry. He is very passionate – both as an actor and person. Head Bush is his passion project and a lot of investment has gone into it. If it does well, and I hope it does well, Dhananjaya, with Daali Pictures, will make 100 excellent Kannada films and give it back to society.
The film is set in the 70s. How did you prepare for the role?
The first thing I did after I heard the script was to Google Ratnaprabha. When I did, only one image popped up, which showed a woman looking demure and vulnerable. She had these beautifully drawn eyes and a middle-partition hairdo. So, we have tried to recreate that look as much as possible. Our costume designer, Shachina Heggar, has put in a lot of research to help us look our parts. I had to do a lot of homework to play a woman who comes from such a well-to-do family as she carried herself a certain way. It was important for me to emulate that. I have tried to play Ratnaprabha as realistically as possible. On the other hand, director Shoonya has skilfully handled the reaction and emotional part of my character.
How was it to live in the 70s?
The credit must really go to our art director, Badal Nanjundaswamy. He is an absolute magician; give him anything and he will turn it into a masterpiece. As soon as we walked into the sets, we were immediately transported to the 70s era. And this helped our performance a lot. Also, our director of photography, OP Shijoy, did a fabulous job in recreating the mood of that era. It was great to experience the 70s in 2022!
Story writer Agni Sreedhar lived through that era. How important were his inputs?
Sreedhar has an aura about him that is just so energetic. He is a man who exudes energy. Working with him was not just a good learning experience and not just for the character, but also for life. I personally enjoyed conversations with him and will remember them forever. Since he lived through that era, he helped us make the film more realistic.
What can we expect from you and Head Bush?
The film will be a fast-paced political crime drama, so expect a lot of everything. And from me, this is my first release after three years and I have also dubbed for the film. I feel like a debutant all over again with butterflies in my tummy. Since post-partum, I have been through a lot of changes both internally and externally. So, I too am curious to see how I have played Ratnaprabha on screen.