Not long ago, there was a trend of Mollywood actresses migrating to other industries in search of greener pastures. A reverse trend seems to be happening with many of the young male actors from M'town signing on films in other languages. Senior actors like Mohanlal, Mammootty and Jayaram have already made a mark in Kollywood long ago. Language is no longer an insurmountable obstacle and the current crop of actors don’t wish to be restricted to just one language.
The South industry is fast becoming an amalgam of actors from across various industries. Unni Mukundan, who signed his big ticket Telugu film Janatha Garage with NTR Junior and Mohanlal, has now signed on the dotted line for his second Telugu film Bhagmati opposite none other than Anushka Shetty. The actor is over the moon with this exciting phase in his career He shares the details of the thriller written and directed by G. Ashok.
“The makers of the film heard about my work in Janatha Garage including my dubbing in Telugu; that was why I was approached. After the script narration, some date issues cropped up, but the dates were made flexible and that was how I landed the lead role in Bhagmati,” says Unni.
The actor is not at liberty to share any details of his character. He mentions that Jayaram is also part of the film and would be playing a character with grey shades. Though Unni has signed two Telugu films, both his roles are diametrically opposite. In Janatha Garage, he plays the villain and in Bhagmati, the hero. Success comes to those who are willing to go the extra mile and try out unchartered territory. If Unni had considered the language or culture barrier as something best left aside for later, he would not have had two Telugu films to his credit.
Unni states, “I want to be a pan-Indian actor. Doing the Telugu film gave me a thrill akin to facing the camera for the first time; I had all the butterflies! I had to start from scratch in an unknown industry and even studied my lines like a student, but all those were thrilling. I am getting offers from Tamil and other languages, but am biding my time and I am not signing randomly. I want to do the kind of cinema that thrills me! Mollywood will always be my base, but I do not want to restrict myself to just one language and dubbing in Telugu has given me confidence!” The very busy actor is planning to take a break after the shoot of his Telugu film. He reveals, “I went to England and the US and now want to visit Australia. I want to explore and discover myself!”
