'Dasara' and Dheekshith's triumph of hard work

The actor with Keerthy Suresh and Nani in ‘Dasara’.

It’s been a week since the release of the pan-India action-drama ‘Dasara’ — headlined by Nani and Keerthy Suresh — and the film has crossed the 100-crore mark at the box office. Dheekshith Shetty, who plays a key role in the film, has been bombarded with congratulatory messages.

“My biggest compliment came from Sukumar sir (‘Pushpa’ fame). He posted on Twitter that Dheekshith shines as Suri. I haven’t come across a single negative response for my acting,” the actor tells Showtime.

There isn’t any exaggeration in Dheekshith’s claims as people have expressed on social media that they went to the film expecting a treat from Nani and came out as Dheekshith fans. The 26-year-old plays a rugged character who is the protagonist’s best friend. “The director Srikanth Odela’s vision was inspiring. I gave a sincere performance,” says Dheekshith.

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Called Suri, the character is more confident compared to the initial cowardly persona of Dharani, essayed by Nani. Dheekshith even romances Keerthy in the revenge saga set in a village backdrop. “I was able to have conversations with Nani sir and Keerthy mam about my character. I could speak freely about executing my scenes with them. They made a rookie actor like me comfortable,” he says.

The success of ‘Dasara’ is a huge breakthrough for the handsome Kundapur boy, who grabbed eyeballs in Kannada cinema with his debut ‘Dia’ (2020), a romantic tragedy. He made inroads into the Telugu industry with a couple of feature films before starring in a web series (‘Meet Cute’) bankrolled by Nani and directed by the star-
actor’s sister Deepti Ghanta.

“I first met Nani sir during the rehearsals of the dance number ‘Dhoom dhaam dhosthaan’,” recollects Dheekshith. “They were aware that I was a dance reality show winner. Choreographer Prem Rakshith (‘Naatu naatu’ fame) felt assured that I could pull off the steps for the song. In one of the steps, I had to hold Nani sir’s collar and I was hesitant. He broke the ice and encouraged me to do it,” says Dheekshith. The song is a smash hit, with people praising the music, choreography and Dheekshith’s chemistry with Nani.

Dheekshith’s rise has been admirable. For someone who lost out on some crucial roles due to lack of market value, the actor is now better-placed in the industry thanks to his relentless hard work. He has two interesting Kannada-Telugu projects lined up. “First up is ‘KTM’, a coming-of-age story film in which I will be seen in four avatars. There is another project called ‘Blink’ which has a sci-fi plot with an emotional core,” he says.

Apart from that, Dheekshith will be collaborating with Vinay, the co-director of ‘Dasara’, for a pan-India project and a Kannada film with Naveen Raj, who edited ‘Dia’. “I will also start shooting for a web series for Disney+Hotstar from next week,” he informs.