Donning varied roles!

No longer are serials, reality shows or talent hunts seen as just launch pads to silver screen. Actors like Puneeth Rajkumar, Upendra, Pooja Gandhi and even Rakshita, recently jumped into the bandwagon of experimenting in fields that do not involve movie-making. A temporary move which many find very enjoyable and a great way to connect with fans on a personal level.

With reality shows being the flavour of the season, many stars are taking time off from the movies to judge and even host reality shows. Actress Pooja Gandhi will soon be seen in a new avatar. She will be in a reality show, where she will look out for a hero for her new film. The movie meanwhile, she says, will be based on this reality show. “The makers thought why not adapt the show into the film,” she says. It maybe a gimmick to publicise the film but she says reality shows are a great way to interact with the audience, “It’s a lot different from other movies and it allows us to know our audience better,” she adds.

Priyanka Upendra may have limited her appearances on the silver screen but she is all gung-ho about hosting a reality show soon. Keeping her family as her priority, she says that this way she will get more time to spend with them. “Movies are a lot more demanding in terms of travelling and I won’t be able to travel all that much. But with small screen, there will be only one base and I will find it much easier to balance both work and home,” she adds.

Known for his one-liners and quirky way of talking, her husband, Upendra, too is not far behind. Though he has not taken to the small screen, he did put on the headphones and co-host a radio show, where he interacted with fans and even gave them advices on various topics. Another popular actor who followed suite was Komal. His comic sense followed him into the radio station where he called up listeners and played innocent pranks on them. “It was something different and challenging at the same time. Initially I was a little hesitant but I loved co-hosting the show and spreading a few laughs. I feel a lot closer to the listeners,” says Komal, who used to come on air every evening.

At times, many shows even bank on an actor’s popularity or talent and rope them as the ‘face’ of a programme. One of the top movie stars in the Kannada film industry, Puneeth Rajkumar, falls into this category. Known for his dancing skills, he says that being a brand ambassador of a dance reality show was only natural.

He would only make his appearance on the first and the last day of the show, so it would not interfere with his shooting schedule. “Dancing is something I really like and the reason I decided to be part of it was because it provides a great platform to talented dancers in Karnataka and give them an opportunity to get trained by film dance choreographers,” he says.

Reasons are plenty and so are opportunities. This trend of moving into various ventures only proves that namma stars are always on the look out for something new.