My future is like a thriller film

After introducing a bunch of newcomers in his earlier films like Allari and Nacchavule, director Ravi Babu is introducing more newcomers in his next film Nuvvila

Ravi Babu has carved a niche for himself in Tollywood over the past nine years in which he has directed eight films. Whether it’s Naresh playing a boy next door in Allari or Taraka Ratna playing a psychopath in Amaravati, there has always been something interesting about Ravi Babu’s films and the characters he creates. However, this time he has directed a romantic comedy titled Nuvvila.

“Nuvvila is about three guys who meet by chance and what happens in their lives over a span of nine months. The film’s title itself is very abstract and I am narrating an abstract part of people’s lives. You have to experience it without any pre-conceived notions about the film or its characters,” he explains.

Four out of the six lead characters in the film are newcomers; however, Ravi is mighty pleased with their work and says that they have done a wonderful job. “Some stories are best suited for newbies. Frankly, I didn’t find anyone in the industry who would suit the characters in the film. Moreover, I am very comfortable working with newcomers because I had worked with quite a lot of models when I was an ad filmmaker,” he confesses. Havish, Ajay Manthena, Prasad Barve, Yami Gautam, Remya Nambeesan and Sarayu are playing lead roles in this film.

“After completing my acting course, I took a break for two years before I made my debut. I did meet a lot of directors for about six months and when I met Ravi Babu, he offered me a role in this film,” Havish recollects. He plays the role of an aspiring model in the film. Quiz him about working with Ravi, he says, “It was initially tough because he used to get irritated very easily.

Maybe it was for my own good. I am quite confident about the film and I couldn’t have asked for a better role.”So why did he want to become an actor? “It feels great when you get a chance to be a different person everyday,” he says.

For Prasad Barve, who’s an aspiring violinist in the film, it’s not the first time he’s facing the camera. “I wanted to be an actor since my childhood. Before making my debut in films, I acted in quite a few ads for brands like Cadbury’s, Pepsi and Tata Sky,” he reveals. Ask him about how different acting in films is compared to advertisements, and Prasad says, “In ads, you have to tell your story in 30 seconds and your expressions in every frame is important.

When it comes to films, you can relax a bit because you have more time. In a way, my experience in ads helped me a lot.” His co-stars vouch for Prasad’s hard work in the film, which involved memorising all the dialogues in Telugu.

Ajay Manthena had met Ravi a couple of years ago but he chose to work in a gaming company before acting happened. “I didn’t want to be jobless while trying to break into the film industry. Working with Ravi is almost like going to a school, since you have to be attentive and sincere with your job all the time.

It was a challenging exercise and I knew that he wanted each one of us to deliver our best,” Ajay says. Few weeks ago, when the posters of Nuvvila were unveiled, Ravi Babu used pictures of kids instead of the actors in the film. “I guess I am the only filmmaker in Telugu who is being questioned about the posters,” Ravi grins.

“It’s just to raise some curiosity among people because if I reveal the identities of newcomers well in advance, people might end up wondering whether they want to see these actors on screen or not even before the film releases,” he explains.
Apart from directing his films, he also acts from time to time. Off late, he has been extremely choosy about his projects and he has a reason for that too. “I don’t want to take up every offer, which comes my way. I will direct or act only if that subject excites me,” he says. Ask him about his future projects, pat comes a quirky reply, “My future is like a thriller film. You never know what’s going to happen but I am here to do my job and have fun.”

Category: Tollywood