Rakshit Shetty in Zen mode ahead of exciting phase

In his decade-old journey in Kannada cinema, two unforgettable visuals of Rakshit Shetty are from ‘Ulidavaru Kandante’ (2014) and ‘Kirik Party’ (2016). In the last scene of the explosive trailer of the former, he oozes swag as he breaks open a door and walks in with a gun. In ‘Kirik Party’, he sets off on a solo bike ride, in what seems like his journey towards transformation.

Both the films, chalk and cheese in their box-office performances, were born out of Rakshit’s innocence and need respectively. His quest for ‘pure’ cinema led to ‘Ulidavaru Kandante’, a neo-noir crime drama. It was a film close to his heart. But hurt by the audience’s response to it, he craved a blockbuster success. Thus, ‘Kirik Party’, a coming-of-age drama, was born and it went on to rule the box office.

From being the poster boy of new generation Kannada cinema to becoming an artiste known to experiment and seek freshness in each of his films, Rakshit has nearly delivered what he promised in the first phase. Ahead of big projects in the second leg of his career, he comes across as very self-aware as he aims to not repeat his mistakes. In a free-wheeling chat with Deccan Herald, he often talks about self-exploration, the results of which are interesting.

Take his latest ‘777 Charlie’, for his instance. The buzz around it has been positive and he finds it amusing that many are claiming that ‘it’s his time to shine'. “Haven’t I been around doing good work?” he laughs. I am quick to point out that perhaps they are eager for another full-fledged box office success from his banner, Paramvah Studios.

“Probably, yes,” he admits. “When the producer claimed a few things about ‘Avane Srimannarayana’, that’s when people started talking about the film’s numbers,” he tells about his magnum opus fantasy film, produced by Pushakara Mallikarjuniah. His fallout with Pushkara was much talked-about. Both of them offered their version of the reasons for the film’s sub-par show.

“I believe that ‘ASN’ suffered from a bad business strategy. Otherwise, the film could have done good business. That’s why I took ‘Charlie’ completely in my hand. Because, I want to show people that business can be improved if we do it at the right time,” he says.

“I am very clear about my future projects as far as the numbers (box office) are concerned,” he added. “If certain projects need a big-scale treatment, I will push the envelope,” says Rakshit, who believes that a good film deserves to make double the investment on it.

He is more hands-on as a producer than before, says Rakshit. “There was a time when I didn’t want to get too involved in the production even though I had a studio. I wanted a set of people to look after it. I was keen on the creative aspects of filmmaking. I just had an eagle’s perspective of a film’s business. But now, I have a better perspective about it, especially after ‘Sakutumba Sametha’ and ‘777 Charlie’,” he explains.

Rakshit’s plan seems to be on track, given how ‘777 Charlie’, set to be out in theatres on Friday, is being called a pan-India sensation already. The actor plays Dharma, a recluse whose life changes thanks to a dog. Rakshit could relate to many aspects of Dharma’s character.

“He is an introvert and, in many ways, very much like me. I am someone who never cared about being social. Yet, I did some things because the world expected me to do them. Whereas in my friend’s circle, I was extremely myself. The film made me question myself. I started wondering how to respond to certain situations. For example, when I sat for some interviews, I knew, from the word go, they wouldn’t be great because the questions would be very generic and uninteresting. Now in a similar scenario, I ask myself how can I make these interviews interesting from my end?” he asks.

The project, helmed by debutant Kiranraj K, threw fresh challenges at Rakshit. “For the first time, I was shooting for two films – ‘ASN’ and ‘777 Charlie’ – together. In the former, I was this goofy and extroverted man while in ‘Charlie’, I was an introvert. Also, shooting with a dog isn’t easy. So both the films’ making would get delayed, ‘ASN’ due to technical reasons while 'Charlie' due to the performances.

"Only after the film’s first half was shot, I completely got inside the character of Dharma because ‘ASN’ had already been released. So post interval, I switched gears as an actor. Though I know Charlie will steal the show, I wanted to stand out,” he says.

Kiranraj is from Rakshi’s writing team Seven Odds. This gives more reasons for people to speculate about Rakshit ghost-directing the film. “I agree that when I walk into a set, I think as an actor and director. I won't do anything that would hurt me as a director. I will test the director’s boundaries and won’t cross them. This is what happens when I work with Rishab (Shetty), Kiraranj, or Hemanth (M Rao),” he says.

Sometimes, the burden of being called a visionary can be tough to handle. Another grouse from fans is the amount of time taken by Rakshit to wrap up his projects.

“I have always put shorter schedules but I have crossed them. Because those projects needed that much time. For example, we planned to finish the writing of 'ASN' in six months but because there was so much to learn, it took us two extra months. After a total of one and a half years for pre-production, we spent another one and a half years filming.

"‘‘777 Charlie’ also took time, mainly because of the pandemic. Also, I was trying to explore myself. So I took some time off as I had complete belief in Kiranraj to handle the project. I ensured the film didn’t exceed its budget. Now that the learning phase is over, I will be faster in my work. But still, if a project demands more time, I will give it, because the way I work will be the same, that’s with passion and dedication,” he signs off.