Interview | Actor Saiju Kurup: I have realised it is better not to have a wish list FilmyMeet

Saiju Kurup
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Saiju Kurup laughs at various tags attached to his name — Loan Star, Debt Star, EMI Star etc., all referring to the plight of several characters he essayed on screen. “I take it in a positive way and enjoy the memes. At least people are talking about me,” says Saiju, who is playing a character of the same mould in Porattu Natakam releasing on October 18. Post his OTT debut in the web series, Jai Mahendran, his first in a titular role, he has got a new tag as well. “Someone has called me Language Star because I did a video in the seven languages in which the series released!”

Saiju plays the good-hearted but shrewd deputy tahsildar, G Mahendran, in Jai Mahendran. “I didn’t do any homework for the role. I went by what the director said. I haven’t prepared for any role in my career except for the one in Njandukalude Naattil Oridavela in which I played an oncologist. I met a real-life doctor to play that character,” he says.

The actor says that he depends on his judgement to execute a role. “I just go by how we human beings would react in a particular situation. In Bharathanatyam, I am an office-bearer of the temple’s executive committee and many people asked me if I have been with such people in real life. The fact is I have lived outside Kerala (in Nagpur) till I finished my engineering and have hardly been in such a scenario before. I followed my director’s briefing and my understanding of the situation.”

Saiju is all praise for his co-actors in Jai Mahendran, especially the multifaceted Rahul Riji Nair, writer and producer of the series who plays Balu, Mahendran’s partner in crime. “We have been friends since I worked in his film, Dakini. Rahul knows the character since he has written it. We didn’t do any rehearsal; we supported and complemented each other in our combination scenes.”

The buzz around Jai Mahendran comes close on the heels of another success. His production debut, Bharathanatyam, which failed at the box office, has come up trumps on streaming platforms. “The film has crossed 58 million streaming minutes. It is overwhelming when people call it an OTT blockbuster. When it didn’t do well in theatres, I was depressed to such an extent that my wife, Anupama, even asked if I wanted to take a break so as to get me out of the situation. Several friends from within and outside the industry stood by me. Thomas chettan (Thomas Thiruvalla, co-producer of Bharathanatyam), tried to cheer me up saying it will do well on OTT. And it did.”

So, he is up for another production? “Not really. I wanted to produce a film and I have done that. If something exciting comes up I might do it again.”

It is his 20th year in the industry and with over 150 films in his career, Saiju is pleased to have come this far especially because he had no plans to become an actor. It was serendipity that gave him his first film – Hariharan’s Mayookham (2004), also Mamta Mohandas’ debut film. Saiju was working as a sales official with a leading telecom company when he met singer MG Sreekumar for some official work. When Sreekumar asked Saiju whether he would like to act, the latter said yes.

“I wasn’t passionate about acting initially. As I started doing more work, however, I could feel the improvement in me as an artiste. It took eight years for me to get the big break with Trivandrum Lodge. By then I had understood how the industry worked,” he says, adding, “It is important to stay grounded. What has kept me in good stead is the fact that I haven’t hurt anyone and that naturally brings in goodwill. It feels great when people address me by the name of the characters I played.”

The actor sounds pragmatic about doing family dramas and playing the character of the same template — the ones weighed down by problems. “Those who want to make a film with me in the lead role have a specific budget in mind and that budget will work only for family-oriented movies. I am okay with that. I get to do comedy as well. There have been exceptions like Guardian, a thriller, which we pulled off because it needed a limited budget. I don’t want any producer to suffer because of me.”

And he no longer has a wish list of roles. “There used to be one. Now I filter from the offers I get. I have realised it is better not to have that wish list.”

What excites him more is working with young directors. “I started my career with seasoned filmmakers. I respected them but was intimidated by their stature. Now I am at ease in the company of the younger bunch. I am proud that they are choosing me in their films.”

He adds that although there were opportunities to do films in other languages he could not take them up. “There was an offer from the Telugu film industry to act with Junior NTR and I keep getting roles from the Tamil film industry. Most of these projects come at the cost of upsetting my schedule here. I might take up such roles in future, if I need more money!”

Currently shooting for Daveed with Antony Pepe, he will next be seen in Abhilasham, Written And Directed By God, Sthanarthi Sreekuttan and Anand Sreebala.

Jai Mahendran is streaming on SonyLIV and Bharathanatyam on Amazon Prime, Manorama Max and Simply South.