Akshay Kumar waited an hour to fulfil my wish : Kalabhavan Shajohn

In the initial phase of his career, Kalabhavan Shajohn was considered only a mimicry artiste who could evoke laughter in theatres. But his turn as the ruthless police constable in Drishyam caught the audience unawares and also showed his range as a performer. As he nears two decades in the industry, Shajohn has now taken up a new challenge, as a director, and will soon be helming a Prithviraj-starrer. The movie titled Brother’s Day is set to go on floors by February next year.Elated yet humble, Shajohn talks to us about his maiden directorial, his experience working in Shankar’s 2.0 and his journey as an actor.Was directing a movie always part of the plan?I think every person associated with films will have that dream. I have always had it, but I never thought that it would happen so soon. Even when I wrote the script of Brother’s Day, I wanted somebody else to helm it, but things changed when I narrated the story to Raju (Prithviraj). He asked me to be the director. I was apprehensive, but he convinced me and gave me confidence, saying that if I can narrate a tale so beautifully, I can direct it well too. Then he told me that if I direct, he will act in it. I was surprised because he is one of the prominent stars in Malayalam with whom many directors dream to work with. And here he is giving me his dates. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity.Tell us about the movie.I am a person who goes to the movies with my family and I am aware of what kind of films we like. Each of us have different tastes, for instance, I love thrillers and comedies while my mom and wife have other preferences. So, when I make a movie, I want it to be viewed by the family audience of Kerala. Brother’s Day has the elements that will be loved by all. It has humour but is not an all-out comedy that people may expect from me. It also has suspense, emotions and action. It is story of a simpleton like me played by Prithviraj.Incidentally, you are part of Prithviraj’s debut directorial Lucifer. How was that experience?Raju amazed me. At the sets of the film, he wasn’t the actor whom I had seen till then. He was a totally different person, who was clear about what he wants, and we never felt that it is his first directorial. He was so confident and looked like someone who has directed more than hundred movies. He handled veterans like Mohanlal, Manju Warrier and other actors from Bollywood with so much ease. It is a big movie and he is helming it without stressing out anyone and making us all comfortable as actors. Because Raju is an actor too, he knows our pulse and where he should place us to get the best shots. I am waiting to see the movie on screen as the few visuals I saw during the shoot itself are exciting. Lalettan’s style of acting in the movie is totally different from what we have seen so far.You are also part of 2.0. How was it working with in the film with Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar?I am extremely blessed to be part of such a big movie. Unfortunately, I cannot reveal much about my role. I have no combination scenes with Rajni sir but I share screen space with Akshay Kumar sir.I met Rajni sir when he visited the location after returning from the US. Shankar sir introduced me to him and we interacted for 10 minutes. I was stunned and my mind went completely blank on seeing him. I stood staring at him as I couldn’t believe that I was talking to him. He spoke to me about so many things, which I am not able to remember as I was so excited to the meet him. He even patted my back. I feel very lucky to be part of one of his movies.I have been a huge fan of Akshay sir since childhood and when I met him, I found him to be a very simple person. Though we had combination scenes, we couldn’t talk much as his make-up was too heavy and he cannot speak much with it. He said ‘hello’ when Shankar sir introduced me to him and we acted together, saying just the dialogues.I was wonderstruck much later. I had told one of the associates that I would like to take a selfie with Akshay sir on the last day of our shoot. His shoot got over earlier than mine and my close-up shots were being filmed. As it was not fair to ask him for a selfie in the middle of the shoot, I thought of forgetting my wish.It used to take two hours to remove Akshay sir’s make-up and after nearly three hours, the associate informed Shankar sir that Akshay sir is waiting in his caravan as I had asked him for a selfie. I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe that a star like him waited nearly an hour just to fulfil my wish. We took the selfie inside his caravan and spoke a lot. I believe these are the things we should imbibe in our lives as well.From a mimicry artiste and a comedian to a villain, and now a director. How has the journey been?Life is flowing, and I am just swimming as per God’s plans. I have never planned anything, instead I have only tried to do things with dedication and hard work. It is all happening at its own pace and I am happy for whatever is happening in my life. I joined Kalabhavan aspiring to be a mimicry artiste and worked hard for it. Then I wished to be part of a film in some minor role and did that through My Dear Karadi. Then more roles came. From there, it took me more than 100 films to get a character role. Till then, I tried my best to do justice to even the smallest role I got.After My Boss and Drishyam, I started getting good character roles. I think, maybe it is because I never tried to grow by putting others down. I never went behind people seeking roles nor have I told anyone that I can do a role for less money than someone else.Were you frustrated when you had to do work in more than 100 films before you got your big break?Most of the roles in my earlier films had just three dialogues, ‘You are under arrest’, ‘Keyrada jeepil’ and ‘Nikkada avide’. My friends used to tease me asking me to stitch a police uniform for myself because most of the roles had me as a cop. I never lost hope though and it’s probably because of that that I got my break as a police constable in Drishyam.Kalabhavan Shajon in Drishyam You were one of the executive members of AMMA. What do you think about the current situation that the organisation and Malayalam industry is going through?I am a person who is concerned about what is happening in the industry and have a strong opinion about everything. Whenever I have felt that there is an issue related to me or with a movie I am working in, I have always addressed it to the executive members or the president of AMMA and they have always resolved it well. I believe that if there is an issue, it can be informed in the association and sorted it out inside itself. This is my opinion with respect to my experiences.However, people may have different experiences and different problems, and each person should be given justice. That said, I think the industry will only sustain if we continue to work in harmony and cooperation. I think we need to live with mutual respect and love. Respect is important and that should be beyond gender. Everybody should have an atmosphere to work peacefully by giving them freedom and space to work well. I believe, we have such a space in the industry. But it is just my perception. People might have different opinions.What are your other projects?I am also in Arun Gopy’s Irupathiyonnam Noottandu with Pranav Mohanlal, Lal Jose-Kunchacko Boban movie Thattinpurathu Achuthan and Gokul Suresh’s Ulta.