We Did Our Best Convincing Bobby Simha Not To Act Like Rajinikanth: Director Sarath On 'Ko 2'

Director Sarath says forthcoming Tamil political drama Ko 2 does not target any political party or any particular politician. He says the film addresses several problems that haunt the common man.

"I've shown no inclination towards any party or individual in the film. It's about how a common man reacts to problems that haunt him on a day-to-day basis," Sarath told IANS, adding that even though the plot revolves around a common man and the state Chief Minister, he's given lot of weightage to the CM's role.

"I really respect the CM's position. Therefore, I've given equal importance to his character and portrayed it in such a way that people will understand how powerful is his role," he said.

Starring Prakash Raj and Bobby Simhaa, the film is slated for release in cinemas on Friday (May 13th).

The film is based on Telugu political thriller Pratinidhi, and Sarath says he watched the original by accident.

"My friends dragged me to the theatre to watch 'Pratinidhi'. Fifteen minutes into the film, I realised the potential of the subject. That's where the journey of 'Ko 2' started as an idea. Initially, the film was supposed to be produced by film-maker Chakri Toleti, whom I had assisted and composer Yuvan Shankar Raja," he said, adding Vijay Sethupathi was his first choice for the role of the protagonist.

Finally, Bobby Simhaa came on board and producer Elred Kumar bankrolled the project.

Was Bobby a better choice than Vijay Sethupathi?

"Bobby is a director's artist. He has the knack to act like a comedian and can also be serious if a role requires. One of the challenges on this project was to make the whole film entertaining, despite dealing with serious issues. Thanks to Bobby, he ensured where to invoke humour even in a serious scene," he said.

Going by the promos of Ko 2, Bobby's character has superstar Rajinikanth's mannerism. Sarath said it wasn't done on purpose.

"We tried our best to convince him to avoid such mannerisms. But Bobby considers Rajinikanth as God, so when he acts, these mannerisms come to him from within. I think subconsciously he's tuned to act like this. Even when he walks, it reminds one of Rajinikanth," he said.

Ko 2 releases three days prior to Tamil Nadu assembly elections and Sarath hopes it will work in the film's favour.

"We've tried to capture the mood of the election season. I hope audiences will like it and relate to it on an emotional level," he said.

Sarath and Bobby are set to collaborate again for a bilingual project next.

"We plan to go on the floors from October. Bobby will play a cop and a well-known Telugu actor will play the villain," he added.

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