Actor Suhas first earned acclaim as a character actor before making a successful transition to lead roles with Colour Photo, which went on to win the National Award. Riding that success, Suhas headlined several films. In his mixed-bag career, some of his films worked, and others didn’t. Now, he is pinning his hopes on his upcoming film Hey Balwanth, confident that it will mark a turnaround.
Banking heavily on the comedy of the film, Suhas says that his confidence in Hey Balwanth stems from that. “When I was shooting this film, I felt genuinely happy because of the strong comedy quotient,” he says, adding, “Even my co-actor Sudharshan told me that audiences want to see me in such roles. That gave me a lot of confidence, and I strongly believe this film will work for me.”
Talking about his character in Hey Balwanth, Suhas explains that the story revolves around a man who has dreamed of starting a business since childhood. “In hopes of taking over his father’s business, the character I play flunks with studies. His problems begin with realising what kind of business his father is actually involved in. It’s a complete entertainer, narrated in a highly humorous way.”
The actor adds that most of the film revolves around him, Sudharshan, and the female lead Shivani Nagaram. He feels their trio chemistry has worked exceptionally well. “The comedy punches and one-liners will definitely keep audiences laughing. In the second half, especially towards the climax, the emotional graph reaches a new zone. The father-son combination scenes between Naresh and me came out really well,” he says.
Director Gopi Atchara has been associated with Suhas since Colour Photo, and it was Gopi who first felt that Suhas would be apt for the lead character in Hey Bhalwanth. “He worked on a couple of my films earlier and always felt this subject would suit me perfectly,” says Suhas, elaborating that he hopped into the project as there was a balance of humour and the emotional quotient. “The comedy track and the emotional bond between the father and son were the biggest factors that sold the project to me.”
Suhas has no qualms about accepting that his recent failures affected him deeply and concedes that his familial commitments made him somewhat reckless in signing projects. “Yes, I went through continuous flops, and even my wife got upset with me. She told me, ‘Be careful about what kind of films you sign.’ After marriage and kids, responsibilities increased. I accepted a few films recklessly for money, without much control, and that turned out to be a bad phase in my career,” he confesses, adding, “With Hey Balwanth, I thought carefully before signing and decided to do a proper film.”
Suhas now expands his footprint as he ventures into Tamil cinema with actor Soori’s upcoming film Mandaadi. He says his films, Ambajipeta Marriage Band and Family Drama, were his stepping stones. “Mandaadi makers approached me for a negative role after watching Ambajipeta Marriage Band and Family Drama,” Suhas says, as he describes his initial experience on a Tamil set as overwhelming. “I wanted to deliver the dialogues myself, so they gave me a translator. On the first day, I had a long dialogue. My legs were literally shaking. I didn’t understand the language at all — it felt like getting down from a bus in Hyderabad for the first time after coming from my village,” he recalls.
He adds that his tension gradually subsided with a supportive unit and a humble co-star in Soori. “The unit made me feel comfortable. Soori anna is extremely down-to-earth and took great care of me. He even arranged temple visits near our shooting location,” says Suhas as he remarks that overcoming physical challenges in the film was a different task altogether. “We shot extensively in the sea and even fell into the water. Thankfully, both Soori anna and I knew swimming, and stunt choreographer Peter Hein sir was cautious in handling action sequences.” With him playing an older character in the film, he says he is excited to see how the audience receives his role. “I play a very different kind of villain and even look older in this film. I’m excited to see how audiences react,” he says, adding that around 30 days of shoot remain.
The actor reveals that he has another Tamil film produced by filmmaker Karthik Subbaraj’s Stone Bench Films banner, with his AD making his directorial debut. In his concluding statement, the actor, whose career is branching out of Telugu cinema to other industries as well, says he doesn’t believe in chalking out a new strategy or approach and wants to keep things basic and simple. “I don’t interfere in scripts or direction. If I like a director’s narration, I sign the film. I don’t involve myself in things I don’t understand,” he signs off.
The actor has also signed another Tamil project produced by Stone Bench Films. “Karthik Subbaraj is producing it, and his associate director is making his debut. I liked the story, and the film will be released in both Telugu and Tamil,” he says, noting that he is receiving increasing interest from Tamil filmmakers.
Clarifying his approach to filmmaking, Suhas concludes, “I don’t interfere in scripts or direction. If a director narrates a story and I like it, I sign the film. I don’t involve myself in things I don’t understand — it’s too much of a headache,” he says with a smile.