Bharath Bopanna: Vijayanand will be a benchmark film in my career

Director Rishika Sharma’s upcoming film, Vijayanand, will see actor Bharath Bopanna getting into the shoes of Anand Sankeshwar, son of well-known businessman, Vijay Sankeshwar, whose character is played by Nihal. “For someone to be reprising the role of a living personality, it is an opportunity, and equally a responsibility,” says Bharath as he talks about his transition from the small screen. Vijayanand marks his second project on the silver screen, and he considers it a milestone film.  

It was Bharath’s clean-shaven look, which he experimented with during the lockdown, that caught the attention of the makers. “I auditioned twice and gave my screen test before I was finalised to play Anand Sankeshwar. For a moment I was excited, but at the same time, I started questioning myself if I could pull off such a role, but I took care at every step and gave my best,” he says.

Bharath also shares with us how he went about preparing for the role. “Having read about Anand Sankeshwar through various articles, and watching his videos, I was keen to meet him. As Anand is someone who is busy 350 days a year, I managed to get his time on 5 different days. During that time, I often interacted with him on various topics, and observed his mannerisms and behaviour. However, our director said that even though Vijayanand is a biopic, we were not imitating real-life personalities. They were just considered as inspiration and wanted us to represent the character in our style, and this gave me the freedom to perform,” he says.

Apart from Bharath and Nihal, Vijayanand also stars Archana Kottige in the role of Anand’s wife. “Vijayanand has given me a lot. The project will mark my first pan-Indian film that will get a worldwide release. I got an opportunity to be part of a film where we have legendary actors -- Ravichandran and Anant Nag playing important characters. I consider it a benchmark film that has come so early in my career."

Vijayanand, which marks the first production of VRL Film Productions has Prakash Belawadi, Siri Prahalad, Vinaya Prasad, and Anish Kuruvilla in pivotal roles. The film slated to release on December 9 has music director Gopi Sundar making his debut in Kannada, and Keerthan Poojary handling the cinematography.