Darshan: I can’t make another film like Majestic

On every Darshan’s birthday (February 16), fans of the star would gather outside his residence, and the Kannada star would make sure he greets and thanks them. However, things have changed because of the pandemic. Also, this year, Darshan has planned not to celebrate his birthday due to the untimely death of Puneeth Rajkumar. The Roberrt star recently put up a video clip to announce his decision to his fans. He also promised to meet them all next year.

CE caught up with the Challenging Star, who told us that he is not in the right space of mind for celebration. “I don’t want my fans to be disappointed. We will soon meet on a good occasion,” he said. The conversation then moved on to his debut film Majestic, which is set to be re-released soon. He also opened up about how work has become his priority in life, his upcoming films, and more...Excerpts from the interaction:

‘Lost 2 years of precious time’

The actor, who is currently shooting for Kranti, is just taking a two-day break from the sets. He says, “Two years of my life got wasted, which is the case with the entire world. It feels sad to realise the amount of precious time we have lost over the last few years. Now, that we are slowly getting back to normal, my entire focus will be on my work,” says Darshan. Having said that, Darshan is not in a hurry to make up for the lost time. “Past is past, and we can’t do anything about it. The procedures and working pattern of a project will continue. We can’t speed up a film, which requires an 80-day schedule, to be wrapped up in 30 days,” he says.

‘I prefer directors to writers to narrate the story’

“I am an actor, who insists that a director should narrate a story. I would never want to listen to it from the writer. Since it is a director’s medium, I am keen to get details from him before locking the script. It is the producers, who should come forward with the right kind of directors for me to take it further,” he says.

‘Not all films on OTT are meant for family-friendly’

Darshan has been seeing films from across many languages on OTT over the past two years, and when asked if he would want to try something different, he says, “Not at all. In my opinion, not all films on OTT are meant for family viewing. Some films are meant for the big screens. Only theatres that can bring all kinds of audiences under one roof,” he tells us.

Kranti is halfway through

The first-look poster of Kranti directed by V Harikrishna will be unveiled today. According to Darshan, fifty per cent of the film’s shoot has been wrapped up. He adds that the film explores the issues with the education system. “We have planned to travel abroad for a schedule and the locations are getting finalised. I hope to complete the shooting by mid of April. The film is shaping up beyond what we had expected,” Darshan adds.

Darshan and Tharun Kishore Sudhir to team up again after Roberrt

After Kranti, Darshan will be collaborating with director Tharun Kishore Sudhir for a project, backed by Rockline Venkatesh. The actor-director duo’s last film, Roberrt, turned out to be a huge hit. The film will be launched today. Darshan also revealed that he will next team up with Tarak director Prakash Jayaram.

Majestic to re-release on February 18

For Darshan, Majestic, his debut as a hero, remains special. The film, directed by late PN Sathya, turned 20 on February 8. The team has planned to celebrate Majestic’s 20th anniversary by re-releasing the film on February 18. “The film was made using Dolby surround tech, and now, it has been upgraded to DTS format. I managed to watch a glimpse of the new version, and it took me back to the good old days,” says Darshan. “I can’t make another film like Majestic today. If you look at my career graph, among all the films, Majestic has a unique storyline. Usually, films have a hero, who has negative traits. Later, circumstances turn him into a soft-natured guy. But, in Majestic, the hero was a ‘bad guy’ throughout, but he acts good. I felt it was an unusual role.” Darshan adds, “I had put all my energy and efforts into Majestic, and I continue to do the same for all my films till date.”