Dhruva Sarja: Pogaru was not a story tailor-made for me

Dhruva Sarja has veered off the regular route for this fourth film, Pogaru. Dumping his regular stylish looks, he has worked towards not looking good — an image he has tried to carry for almost three years. According to the Addhuri, Bahaddhur, and Bharjari hero, he did all this to remain in the character he plays in Pogaru. “This was not a story tailor-made for me. On the other hand, I got into the character at various stages based on what was sketched by the director and what the story demanded,” says Dhruva, adding that the script became the hero, and he just surrendered himself to the character.

His previous films had him engage the audience with a lot of dialogues, emotions and drama, with the makers also keeping in view the actor’s opinions. “However, Pogaru did not give me a choice about how I should look and feel. Instead, I had to go by what the role required. There is a younger version of me, for which I had to become a 17-year-old boy. I was not asked to just look like one, but was told to be one. I initially thought of shedding 5 kg, then it became 10 kg, and finally, I ended up losing 33 kg. Then, I was again asked to go to the other extreme and put on weight. Overall, to look like a hero with messy looks was not an easy task,” he explains.

Dhruva recalls that director Nanda Kishore was clear with all these demands before they began the shoot. “After much thought, I was game for it and took it up as a challenge. I was so involved in my character that I didn’t want to cheat for the schoolboy look. I took it as an opportunity and ended up embracing the transformation,” he says.

Dhurva adds that apart from the intense action sequences and all the commercial elements, Pogaru is a family drama at heart. “The major highlights are the mother-son bonding, the brother-sister relationship, and the hero’s attachment to a girl, all told from the perspective of a youth who has a disturbing past. It talks about the impact that bad childhood experiences can have on a person while growing up; the way they shape his adult life and their effect on his relationships,” he reveals.

“I have not done any make-up for this film. I didn’t feel the need to apply glycerine. The emotions are real. All these little things make my character in Pogaru very close to reality,” adds Dhruva, who is dedicating this film to his late brother, Chiranjeevi Sarja.