'Artistes should not have any barriers'

Actress Sanjana Burli has her kitty full with movies. The artiste, who was seen recently in ‘Weekend’, is busy with two upcoming Kannada films and a Tamil project. In a candid chat with Metrolife, she talks about the challenges she has faced, and how she is preparing for the future.

What movies are you working on now?
The post-production of ‘Sneharishi’ is on. I play a sub-inspector in the film, it’s quite a mature character compared to what I played in ‘Weekend’. I am currently shooting for ‘Steel Pathre Saamana’ directed by Aravind Kaushik, which is almost done and ‘Radha Searching Ramana Missing’. I will also be making my debut in Kollywood with fantasy fiction/dark comedy ‘Choomandrakali’.

Tell us a bit about your roles.
I feel lucky about the variety of roles I have been offered. In the satirical comedy ‘Steel Pathre Saamana’, the story revolves around three men. I play Suma, a girl next door, who affects and changes things in the lives of the three men.‘Radha Searching Ramana Missing’ is a suspense thriller which will keep the audience on their seat’s edges. I play the role of a college-going girl who is studying architecture. There are many shades to this character. In ‘Choomandrakali’, I play a witch who does black magic but for a good cause. It is a powerful role. I have a fresh look in the film as I have only worn saris which was quite interesting.

What has been the most challenging role for you?
As an actor, I have explored more of drama. I got to explore comedy in ‘Steel Pathre Saamana’ which requires proper timing. Also, the director would only give the artistes the script on the sets and ask us to improvise on it on the spot. Thankfully, I was mentally prepared for it.

In ‘Radha Searching Ramana Missing’, I play a Christian girl. My character has nuances which are affected by religion, which was new to me. I play a
layered character; my role goes through a transformation which turns her into a rebel.

The names of the films are intriguing. Your thoughts?
Kannada films have very innovative names now. Many of them do not have a Kannada name. It is important to draw attention to the film and there is a lot of thought given to the names now.

Most actors try their hand in different film industries. Is this a good phenomenon?
Tamil was a new language for me and I thought I would need a lot of practice but the team made it very easy for me. It is when actors try new things that they understand how much they can push themselves. An artist should not have any barriers about language or industry and should be open to everything. One gets to learn a lot when they try different things. ‘Choomandrakali’ was shot in jungles and hills and it was a different experience to shoot wearing a sari the entire time.