In a first for Kannada television, a female protagonist in the brand new soap on Colors Kannada debuts plays the role of a thief. Actress Prerana Kambam dons the role of a cute thief, who steals from the rich and greedy for a noble cause in the serial titled Ranganayaki. Named after the 1981 classic Kannada movie directed by the legendary Puttanna Kanagal starring Aarathi, Ashok, Ambareesh and others, a woman-centric tale, the latest take on the small screen shows ‘women’ from a slightly different perspective with the soul essence being the same. Bengaluru Chronicle catches up with the actress Prerana who plays the lead role. She shares her acting journey from how she chose being an actress while she had several other goals set in the past.
“I grew up in Hyderabad and then went to the US for some years and returned to India to settle in Bengaluru with my parents because of my grandparents who live here. I never ever thought of becoming an actress. It just happened to me by chance. While I had just finished engineering, I somehow learnt about the auditions for the mythological soap Hara Hara Mahadeva. I don’t even know why I thought of giving it a try. It was around 9 pm when I finished the audition for it and by 10 pm I got the call that I have been selected to play the role of Sati’s sister in it. The next day I was in Mumbai shooting for the soap for over four months. It changed everything for me. I wanted to be something else and finally ended up being an actress and I am loving it,” says Prerana.
In fact, she reveals that she first wanted to be a fashion designer, then changed her mind to become a lawyer and next a microbiologist before she finally pursued engineering in industrial engineering and management. “In between I had even enrolled myself for chartered accountancy,” she smiles.
With no acting experience, Prerana says she learnt the art while at work. “After my short role in the mythological serial, I got an offer to act in the movie Karaali — it is my favourite genre — horror and then came Churikatte. Even for Ranganayaki, I earned the role through auditions. Unlike the typical family drama, Ranganayaki stands out for its woman centric subject which depicts the female protagonist as a thief. She does it for a noble cause. When I first heard about the role, I simply smiled on hearing the concept of a cute thief but it has larger picture with a meaning,” she explains.
As a school going child, Prerana recollects that she was very much obsessed with television shows and programmes. “I would watch every serial and shows and literally narrate them to my friends back in the school. I have faced trouble because of it. Even now, my favourite pastime is TV and movies if not my books,” she adds.
Her debut movie was Karaali which is a horror and Churikatte wherein she plays the female lead. It was one of the best movies in 2018 which earned appreciation from the critics and is rated as one of the best Kannada movies in the recent past.
“Apart from work and TV, I am an athlete since myschool days and even to this date, I participate in marathons. While I hope that new avenue of opportunities opens with post Ranganayaki, I love to do women centric roles irrespective of the small or big screen, as my aim is to inspire other aspiring girls and at least to do my best as an actress in south Indian industry,” she wraps up.
