Tom Alter’s son, Jamie, to make his Kannada film debut

Jatta director BM Giriraj, who is teaming up with Crazy Star Ravichandran for a period drama produced by NS Rajkumar, has added an interesting name to the cast. Jamie Alter will be making his Kannada film debut with the project.

The director, who is on a mission to preserve the Kannada language, has chosen Kannadiga as the film’s working title. The film is set in the 1850s during the British and Portuguese rule in India. Some flashback sequences will also take the viewers to the 1550s. The story is based on a true incident, and will show Ravichandran in the role of a Kannada scholar who comes from a family of writers. It will feature Jamie Alter in the role of Reverend Ferdinand Kittel, a priest and Indologist known for procuring knowledge about the language and for producing a Kannada-English dictionary during his stay in Mangaluru, Madikeri and Dharwad.

Jamie is the son of noted actor Tom Alter, who was also part of the 1977 Kannada film, Kanneshwara Rama, directed by MS Sathyu.

Jamie is excited to be a part of an interesting project and says he will be flying down to Bengaluru next month to begin shooting. He is no stranger to Bengaluru, having stayed in the city for four years when he was working for a company here. Recalling those days, Jamie says he knows a lot about the city. “It is nice to get back, and of course, this time for a film project,” he tells Cinema Express.

Jamie, who has worked in a handful of films, says this Kannada movie will be a fresh start. “It will all be new for me, especially because of the language, and the chance to work with a senior actor (Ravichandran) and a director like Giriraj. Hopefully, it will go well, and we will have fun doing it,” he says, adding, “I liked the fact that when Giriraj approached me, and when we discussed the project, all he said was that I need not be under stress and that he is there to help me. He asked me to consider it as a new project. He also mentioned that I should surrender myself to him and he will take care. That way, I just have to focus on my acting.” 

The team plans to launch the project on October 26, on the occasion of Vijayadashmi. The shooting will begin in Chickamangaluru in November. Kannadiga will have music composed by Ravi Basrur and cinematography by GSV Seetharam.