Kalabhavan Shajohn: I’ve done 30 cop roles and I thought I wouldn’t do another, but here I am

Kalabhavan Shajohn is thrilled with the success of his last film, Aattam, an ‘out of the box’ social drama, directed by debutant theatre person Anand Ekarshi. And he’s looking forward to his next, Ramachandran Rtd SI, by newbie writer-director Sanoop Sathyan, which also features Biju Santosh and Anumol.

“After Aattam, this was a character that interested and excited me,” says the actor. He has MA Nishad’s Oru Aveshanathinte Thudakkam, Sarath Chandran RJ’s Ouseppinte Osythe and Arun D Jose’s Bromance coming up. The actor talks to us about playing cop roles, Malayalam cinema today and more. Excerpts…

You have played several cop roles and were looking to play other characters. What prompted you to take this on?
Yes, I’ve played about 30 cop roles by now and much as I thought I wouldn’t do another, I could not say no to this one. As an actor, I felt excited about this character.
This film is an investigation drama. The role of Ramachandran starts with the personal turmoil the policeman feels on retiring and then, because he was a brilliant investigator, he starts a private detective agency and works on two cases. This is a cop film with a realistic tone.

As a veteran, what are your thoughts on the Malayalam film industry, which is on everyone’s radar now?
There are big projects underway and cinema appreciation has seen a great change. Even playing a senior cop, I think my upcoming film will be counted among this new-age cinema.
The new crop of films coming from our industry have been stunning and it is wonderful to see. A couple of years back, filmmakers were making movies solely for OTT and they lacked quality; they were just doing it as a business. But now, directors and writers are keen that the films should work in theatres and the change is visible. This is a superb change and we are looking forward to some more amazing films.

Did you think Aattam would receive the response that it did?When we listen to some scripts, you can tell it has a certain class, even though you don’t know if it will work in theatres.
Actor Vinay Forrt had called me to tell me about this movie and I was immediately curious. When Anand did a narration, I could see his vision and clarity as a director and knew that the script was in good hands. We did a drama camp, which was a new and special experience for me. I knew it was a different experience, but it is thrilling for me that people are discussing it online and still talk to me about it.