'Seven is the kind of film that can work in any language'

Havish's career has not been an easy ride so far, but the actor tells us he already has a solid line-up of films for the future. "I have no godfather in the industry and I'm happy with whatever I have done so far. My last film Ram Leela (2015) didn't do well, but it fetched me a big project. I want to work in films that are rich in content and always aspire to give my best in whatever I do. Soon after the teaser of Seven released, I have signed on three films and one of them has gone on the floors recently. Despite some gap, I think I’m still in the game," he says. 

Excerpts from an interview: 

What is Seven all about?

It's a fast-paced contemporary romantic thriller with several layers and an intriguing plotline. The backdrop is quite unfamiliar to our audience, but  I believe they will forget they are watching a different film 20 minutes into it. The story revolves around seven principal characters, six of whom are women. How each love story unfolds is going to keep the audience on their toes. 

Is there a particular reason for choosing to make this a bilingual?

Initially, we started it off as a straight film in Telugu. But producer MS Sharavanan liked the story and came forward to produce the Tamil version. We believe Seven is a kind of film that can work in any language.  

We heard you refused to dub your own lines for the Tamil version.

I wasn't keen on doing a Tamil film as I cannot speak the language. I suggested the makers' rope in another hero for the Tamil version, but our producer Ramesh Varma and director Nizar Shafi were particular about me doing it. The first week of shoot was a nightmare. I had practised a small dialogue in Tamil at least a thousand times, but couldn't pull it off when the camera started rolling. It took me a lot of time to understand the meaning of a single word. Credit to my makers and my co-stars for helping me with the lines. So, keeping the best interests of our film in mind, I suggested that the makers go for a dubbing artiste.

Why were you hesitant about lip-locks?

When Shafi told me about the lip-lock scene on the very first day of the shoot, I informed him that I’m not ready for it as such scenes make me uncomfortable. Unhappy over my no-kissing policy, our producer kept telling me that an actor should do what is required for a film. After a week, I realised that he was extremely angry and it was then that I agreed to do it. I think such scenes will work only if both actors feel comfortable. 

You are turning a producer with Rakshasudu.

Apart from acting, I want to gain a foothold as a producer too. Production has been on my list for a long time and when I saw Ratsasan (Tamil), I couldn't think of a better film to start my journey. We have wrapped up the film in a single schedule and locked July 18 as the release date. I will continue producing films with other heroes who are willing to collaborate with me.