JOIN USDheekshith Shetty talks about his bustling career
Dheekshith Shetty talks about his bustling career with excitement. After seeing off the pandemic rollercoaster, the actor is nearing the end of a promising 2021. The youngster, who impressed as a quiet and romantic boy in the widely-acclaimed Kannada film ‘Dia’, is busy in Telugu cinema. In a big development, he has just completed an anthology bankrolled by superstar Nani.
So how did the handsome Kundapur boy, who triumphed in the reality show ‘Dance Karnataka Dance’ and grabbed eyeballs in the TV serial ‘Nagini’, find his way into the Telugu industry?
“My recent film ‘Rose Villa’ was first planned as a Kannada project. But when the producer backed out, we found another producer from Hyderabad who insisted it should be made in Telugu. So that’s how I made my Telugu début,” he tells Metrolife.
Dheekshith seemed to have created a good first impression in the industry. “They appreciated my time management and discipline in ‘Rose Villa’. I dubbed myself for the film. So the producer offered me ‘Mugguru Monagallu’, which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video,” he says.
Nani’s Wall Poster Cinema’s next project is an anthology titled ‘Meet Cute’. Dheekshith plays the lead in one of the five films. “I would call it a romantic, feel-good film. It marks the directorial debut of Nani’s sister Deepthi Ghanta. She was happy with my performance,” he says.
The success of ‘Dia’ was a much-needed one for the 25-year-old but it didn’t come easily. The film’s run in theatres was halted by the pandemic last year before an OTT release changed its fortunes.
“The word-of-mouth for the film was good. I was running from theatre to theatre and the shows were slowly getting full when the coronavirus outbreak happened,” he recollects.
The tremendous response to ‘Dia’ — a romantic tragedy — wasn’t expected when it dropped on a streaming site. Director K S Ashoka received appreciation calls from the likes of Mani Ratnam and Rajkumar Hirani.
“People liked my subtle performance. Many said I could act through my eyes. Apart from the Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu audience, Kannadigas in Chicago loved the film” he says.
Post the celebrations, the pandemic posed several challenges. “I injured my neck while practising an action sequence for my next Kannada film ‘KTM’. My new projects didn’t take off because the film industry had come to a standstill,” he says.
Dheekshith believes an artiste must always be keen to explore. “I am a Kannadiga and want to make a mark in Sandalwood. That said, I wouldn’t want to miss good opportunities in other languages,” says the actor.
He doesn't want to get stereotyped as a romantic hero. “You will see me in different avatars in ‘KTM’. I am also shooting for another Kannada film called ‘Sheegrameva Kalyana Prapthirasthu’,” he signs off.