Sathish: I am firmly against body-shaming humour

Many times, despite knowing the core of a horror film, a cinephile would catch it solely for the thrills and jump scares. The spine-chilling suspense, coupled with eeriness has long captivated audiences. Actor Sathish, whose recent horror-comedy film Conjuring Kannappan is running in theatres, confesses that he is indeed afraid of ghosts and doesn’t sleep alone at night post-viewing. “I have a fear of ghosts, but that doesn’t stop me from watching a horror film. I would watch and feel scared later. We would go as a group, pass comments, and have fun,” he laughs.

Conjuring Kannappan, directed by Selvin Raj Xavier, revolves around Kannappan (Sathish) and his family who get entangled in a nightmarish mess after accidentally plucking a feather from a cursed dreamcatcher. “Just like the name, which is reminiscent of the classic horror franchise, the film stays true to its genre and delivers equal amounts of scares besides comedy,” he says.

Horror comedies are not unfamiliar territory for the actor who had previously worked in Devi and Oh My Ghost. But this one stands out as something unique mentions Sathish. “Unlike other films where people deliberately enter a haunted mansion, this one has no exit. The characters are put in a situation where they are stuck and can’t look back until they find a solution,” he says.

With the massive volume of films churned out in this genre in the past decade, does Sathish think that horror comedies have been milked to death? “Audiences like watching horror movies irrespective of the language. Since we have not encountered them in real life, people are drawn to experiencing them on screen. Moreover, narratives based on real-life experiences and hearsay remain immensely popular among the public. There, of course, needs to be a healthy balance of both horror and comical elements, along with a solid story, actors and a good production value,” he opines.

As an actor, Sathish shares that he hasn’t placed himself as a hero even while headlining films. “Take this film for example where everyone has fun around me. But it was because of my character that they are in this predicament. At that time, he too can’t join them as the seriousness of the situation would become diluted. We need to go along with the story and not do any antics that would confuse the audience. It might look like the role is being underplayed, but we need to give the story the priority and play the character,” he explains, adding that it is important to give into the director’s vision.

The Ethir Neechal actor agrees that it is important to stay relevant and updated while delivering quality comedy. “When a comedian can provide a good 'punch dialogue' in a film, it will resonate well. Being in this field, we also need to avoid repetition and use sentences that are trending. Even if the taste of the audience remains constant, there is a necessity to update ourselves,” he says, while adding, “A recipe of a good comedy hinges on the right situation. There might be no hilarious lines or slapstick humour, but that moment itself evokes necessary laughs.”

It is evident that audiences have started looking out for clean comedy devoid of body-shaming, needless insults or slapping. Sathish, who is aware and understands that, says that he is constantly working towards creating the same. “We used to tease a classmate named Sangeetha using the dialogue ‘Sangu oothura vayasula Sangeetha.’ At that age, we didn’t understand the gravity of our words that would have hurt her,” he reflects. “Now that we have grown and are interacting with people of various body types, I’m understanding their challenges. With better awareness, audiences are reacting with anger and disapproval for such humour. These mistakes shouldn’t be committed again. I firmly stand against the use of body-shaming comedy.”

Coming from Crazy Mohan's school of comedy, Sathish has embodied lessons from his plays and has tried to incorporate them in his films as well. “There are some poignant moments from his plays like Madhu +2 which have affected me deeply. In my upcoming film Sattam En Kaiyil, my character maintains a serious tone throughout the runtime. Similarly, I would like to take up roles that are diverse and different,” he says and quotes examples of comedians Nagesh from Nammavar and Vadivelu from Em Magan who have aced delivering emotional scenes.

As a parting note I ask him about his learnings from the noted playwright, he says, “His style is filled with genuine comedy, specialising on wordplay and doesn’t use any adult jokes. His constant exuberance and positive aura are aspects I deeply admire and aim to embrace in my own journey.”