‘I couldn’t find an equal to Vishnu’

Talk about the 2004 Kannada hit film, Apthamitra, and everyone remembers the hit combination of actor Vishnuvardhan and director P Vasu. The director is now back to helm Apthamitra 2. While part one was inspired by Malayalam movie ‎Manichitrathazhu, part two draws from the Tamil hit Arannamai.

The first edition was a horror comedy, co-written and directed by Sundar C, and it featured Vinay Rai, Santhanam, Hansika Motwani, Viroshan, Andrea Jeremiah and Raai Laxmi among others.

The second part, presented by Surappa Babu, will be producer Ramesh Yadav’s 21^st film. The title is to be officially launched on Vishnuvardhan’s birthday tomorrow, and CE spoke with P Vasu who is currently working on its screenplay. The film will most likely go on floors from November.

Vasu says, “The title and the subject were suggested by the producer. I will start work on it once I return from Sabarimala, where I go every year; this is my 37^th year of this pilgrimage.”

Remembering his friend and actor Vishnuvardhan on his birth anniversary, Vasu says that not just the audience even the industry misses him. “I miss him more than anyone else,” he says. “I thought I would have to forgo many movies because I could not find an equal to him. He was such a great actor, not just in Kannada. I talk about him whichever I industry I work in.”

As a director, he often failed to catch Vishnuvardhan’s subtlety. “I could appreciate his talent and the nuances he introduced only on screen,” says Vasu. “I have wondered at times why he paused in a scene, then I would understand why when I scrolled the scenes back on the monitor. It took a long while for me to understand this strength of his. His silences were his most expressive asset.”