Chaithra J Achar.
Credit: Special Arrangement
Chaithra J Achar, known for playing Surabhi in ‘Saptha Sagaradaache Ello: Side B’ (SSE), will now make her debut in Telugu cinema with ‘Fauzi’. She will be seen in a major role in the film, which also stars Prabhas. “It is a meaty character,” she shares.
The actor has her hands full with numerous films across the South Indian film industries.
In Kannada, she will be seen in ‘Marnami’, slated for release on November 21. She is also doing a “quirky” movie with Shakti, a young director. It is being produced by Suram Movies, which produced ‘Nidradevi Next Door’.
Chaithra was last seen in the Tamil movie ‘3 BHK’, where she was cast opposite Siddharth. She is currently working on Raju Murugan’s ‘My Lord’, which also features Sasikumar, in addition to a webseries and a film, both of which are untitled and under production.
She speaks to Showtime about her various roles, how she approaches them, and her journey in the industry.
“I played a girl with cerebral palsy”
Chaithra recalls her character Nancy from ‘Gilki’, one her favourite roles. “I played a girl with cerebral palsy. It was a love story between a mentally challenged boy and Gilki, who is physically challenged, but mentally sharp. This character stays very close to me because of the various challenges it came with,” she says.
“I’m usually spontaneous while playing a role”
Talking about how she prepares for a role, she says she is more of a “go there and figure it out kind of a person”. “I’m usually spontaneous while playing a role and director Hemant (M Rao, whom she worked with on ‘SSE’) would always tell me that spontaneity is my USP and I should never change that,” she adds.
“I think a lot about the characters — why is she behaving in a particular way, why should she and why is it important. And I ask the directors a lot of questions. If there is a scene where the character has to interact with someone, I need to know what she has done before? Where is she coming from? It is not in the script. It need not be in the script. But it gives perspective So when you get answers, they register subconsciously and help while performing,” she says.
“I was told not to judge the characters I do”
While working in Hemanth’s ‘SSE: Side B’, where she played a sex worker, she met a lot of sex workers to understand her role. “I had all kinds of questions for them. Among them was if they had ever fallen in love. One lady responded ‘How many do you want?’ She had perhaps experienced it many times,” Chaithra chuckles. “I wanted to understand their vulnerabilities, how their relationships ended and if they were ready to fall in love again.” Their inputs and Hemanth’s vision sculpted Surabhi.
“Many actors have told me not to judge the characters I play. Even if she is murdering someone, you must stand in her position to understand her actions. There are consequences that people will face, but that person at that moment will feel that is what they must do. So if you already say it is bad, you'll never come to terms with what the person feels,” she shares, adding, “That is what I told myself when I played Surabhi.”
“Guruprasad was my first director”
She recalls auditioning for the late filmmaker Guruprasad, who made movies like ‘Mata’ and ‘Eddelu Manjunatha’. It was her first audition. “I read the scene and memorised all the dialogues,” she recalls. This was in 2017. Chaithra was selected and even started shooting for the film which was titled ‘Adema’. However, it was soon shelved. “But I had great experience working with him. I learned a lot observing him directing. I realised that performing before the camera gave me an adrenaline rush each time. That's why I started doing it. Even today, I think that is what I enjoy the most - nervous excitement,” she shares.
“Friends told me to remove the mole on my face”
Chaithra says it has been a “struggle” to get to where she is now. “I had to fight with my family and bear the unsolicited opinions of relatives to get here. My family is academically oriented. They did not expect that one of them would choose a career in films. They were ill-informed about the industry and worried for my safety. They went to the extent of saying I was not their blood. I was even slut-shamed me,” she recalls.
Returning home late at night after a shoot caused her mom to worry about what the neighbours would think. “This happened every time there was a night shoot. I had to then wake up and recharge for the following day. But today I am appreciated. I’m proud of my choices and my resilience,” she shares.
Chaithra also recalls how her friends commented on her skin colour and told her it was not suitable for the movies. “Some even suggested I remove the mole on my face. But the directors I worked with assured me that ‘it’s a character by itself’,” she laughs.