The news of actors donning the mantle of direction, production or any other allied facets in tinsel town does not raise eyebrows anymore. Srikanth Sreedharan who has acted in movies like Bibleo, Ayaal Njanalla and Kismat among others will now be branching out into the realms of direction. Most of us would recall his eponymous character of an RSS activist in the film Kismat. The film Srikanth will be directing — Seine with the tag line ‘Circumstances needn’t dictate your crime’ is only 20 minutes long, but he does not want it to be tagged as a short film.
Srikanth elaborates on the reasons, “Though the film is not of a long duration, it has been shot exactly like a movie. The treatment and technicians behind the visuals, music and editing all have a cinematic background. The treatment extended is the same as given to any full length film, hence my hesitation to tag Seine as a short film.”
The two main characters in the film are Anil Nedumangad, who acted as the antagonist in Kammattippadam, and Jose P. Raphel, who has an acting as well as theatre background. I tells the story of two friends whose friendship undergoes a trial by fire after money and alcoholism come in between them. Being a part of the industry, the shift from ‘in front of’ to ‘behind’ the camera was very easy for Srikanth. He says, “I had been planning to direct a film for some time and with my experience and friends in the industry, this seemed like a good time to go for it.” The actor also has in his kitty a project titled Eratta Jeevitham directed by Suresh Narayanan. Srikanth plays a Muslim youth in the film which focuses on transgender issues.
The actor, who has been known to portray off beat roles, says, “The films I am a part of should have a message to be conveyed to the audience. Here, I do not look at the commercial gains for myself, but what I can contribute to my character. But as an actor, I cannot afford to be choosy; tomorrow, if I am called for a big budget commercial film, I will act in it.” Films are not his only means of livelihood; Srikanth has started an advertising agency which is doing good business. “I was working earlier, but resigned to start my own company. In any case, I feel ad films are an extension of films.”
