A dance with life

Actor Naveen Thirthahalli made his debut on the silver screen with 'Dushta'. This was followed by movies like 'Manjina Honey', 'Aata', 'Kelade Nimageega' and 'One Time'. He was particularly noticed for his role as a district commissioner in 'Baragaala'. Naveen will soon be seen as a tough ATS officer in 'Karigambaliyalli Midinaga' and in the thriller 'Andhagaara'.

A perfect weekend for me is about spending time with myself and the people I love. There are times when I am at a shoot or away for work but whenever I am in the city, I love to be at home or just chill with my friends. I like to keep my plans different always.

When I am home, I love spending time with my cousin Sowmya. She and I start the day with a cup of coffee. We spend time in the kitchen experimenting. Sometimes we manage to make some finger-licking creations, which include vegetarian dishes like 'sambhar' or chicken specialities. Though I wouldn't call myself an expert in the kitchen, I cook decently. I don't like eating outside and I am a health freak, so home food is my comfort food too.

Sowmya and I chit chat and we pull each other's legs. She tells me stories about work while I give her interesting tidbits from the film industry and tell her about my films. We also like watching movies and I encourage her to read books. I love reading autobiographies and biographies. My favourite authors are Yandamoori Veerendranath, SL Bhyrappa, Poornachandra Tejaswi and Osho.

When I'm not at home, I go out with my friends. I'm close to Rakshit and Kireeti. Rakshit works as a software engineer but is also working in short movies and Kireeti is a freelance photographer. We talk about movies and a lot more. We are like-minded people.

I am a dog lover and I love visiting Rakshit especially because of his pet, a Rottweiler called 'Stark'. He is such a bundle of joy and one won't realise how time passes by when I am playing with 'Stark'.

I also love going for night rides with Rakshit and Kireeti. Sometimes, we take off to NICE Road and chill at a cafe or just drive along. Night drives have a certain joy to it. There is almost no traffic then which makes most conversations interesting. One can concentrate more on spending time with each other than be bothered about bumper-to-bumper traffic. We love spending time at campfire sights.

When we are outside, we spend time at restaurants and hotels like 'The Watering Hole', 'Silver Oak', Chancery Pavilion, The Lalit Ashok, etc.

Solo bike rides is another favourite pastime. I love taking off on my bike to any destination, even if it is a familiar one or somewhere where I am going for the first time.

In the city or not, working out is a big part of my life. I workout at the gym for at least 90 minutes in the morning and evening.

If I'm not pumping it up at a gym equipment, then I would be busy with my stunt classes.

My stunt classes made me realise that I was capable of anything. They helped me improve my performance in action sequences in films.
Though I would not call myself a great dancer, I do not miss out my dancing classes too.

I really love to swim. Swimming can leave one fresh and rejuvenated like nothing else. I am a nature lover. I am charmed by the dense forests and waterfalls. Spots where one can trek call out to me. I love going to places like Kodachadri, Chikkamagaluru, Mysuru, Agumbe etc.

One of my favourite places is my native place, Thirthahalli. There are many beautiful sights there as it is just 15 km away from the Western Ghats. I love spending time with my mother Shantha and brother Nithin, when at home.

I don't have to do something out of the way to feel happy. I am a simple person and my regular activities along with people who matter to me is a weekend well spent."