Theatre artistes turn movie stars

‘Gini Helida Kathe’ is a family entertainer starring only theatre performers.

Nagaraja Uppundra’s directorial ‘Gini Helida Kathe’ is hitting the screens today. Starring Dev Rangabhoomi, Githanjali, Malathesh, Firoz and Vinay, the film is produced by V Devraj under the banner of Buddha Chithralaya. The music is scored by Hithan Hassan.

Actor Dev Rangabhoomi, who always wanted to work in a family entertainer, says, “Hailing from a theatre background, I am always inclined towards art. My intention was to make a film for people of all ages”.

He notes the reason for the casting of only theatre artistes, “We are appreciated for our acting skills but not given a chance. This thought inspired me us to take to this film”.

Talking about the importance of theatre, he says, “Theatre keeps one grounded and is the best place to learn acting. There are nearly 87 characters in our film and all of them come from a theatre background.”

Though the storyline is of a love story amidst complications, the film is not hero-centric. Every character in the film has a story of its own.

Malathesh, one of the leads, affirms that the film is something to look forward to. He adds, “Films are different from theatre in many ways. Many young actors take up theatre just to gain experience. Also, in theatre, we deal with live audience; we communicate with them”.

It is the debut movie for the female lead Githanjali. Sharing her experience, she says, “Working alongside senior theatre artistes has instilled confidence in me. Over the course of filming, I have learnt a lot, personally and professionally.”

The 23-year-old actress says that the film is close to her heart because of its storyline. “I was able to connect with my role. The film is realistic and has characters to whom everyone can relate to,” she adds.