INTERVIEW: Prabhas On Being A Pan-India Star, Radhe Shyam, Adipurush And More

Q. You have been travelling quite a lot to Mumbai during film promotions. How has been your experience with this city?

A. Earlier also I used to visit Mumbai with my friends. At that time no one knew me, so we used to go to the beaches too. Walked around a lot, used to eat Vada Pav. Mumbai is full of energy. I was visiting my brother for the first time and we were supposed to meet at the VT station. I saw there that people are not walking, but running, literally. I had never seen anything like this before. Now I keep coming here. I also shot for Adipurush here.

Q. The film talks about fate, destiny and the future. How much do you believe in destiny in real life?

A. Personally, I only believe in hard work. However, after Baahubali I realized that there is such a thing as destiny. But destiny and fate are all very big things to understand. That's why our job is to just keep working hard.

Q. After Baahubali you emerged as a pan-India superstar. Now Allu Arjun is also enjoying pan- India success with film like Pushpa. How do you see this healthy competition?

A. Allu has done an amazing job in Pushpa. It's a very good film. As far as pan-India success is concerned, this is just the beginning. I feel this too has started too late. It has been 100 years to Indian cinema. Now, we need to do much more; we need to fight with bigger film industries around the world. We are Indian film industry, we are one.

Q. After Baahubali, almost all your films are releasing nation wide. So what are the things you keep in mind while signing a film? Or what attracts you in the script?

A. Choosing the perfect script is the toughest part. Because be it Bollywood or Tamil or Telugu industry, there are only three or four types of films, commercial masala, love story, family films and one realistic films. It becomes very difficult to choose one right script which can resonate with the pan- India audience. So far, only three films (from the South film industry) have been a pan-India hit, Baahubali, KGF and Pushpa. But now, we will make more of such films. We are learning. Presently, before the release of the film, it is not even known how the reaction will be. Saaho got better response in Hindi than Telugu. I think it will take us four to five years to get there. For a hundred years we were working differently. Now we are learning something different, something new.

Q. You are going to play the character of Lord Shri Ram in 'Adipurush'. In today's time, when controversy is created even over the smallest things, what do you feel about this film?

A. I had never felt so nervous for any of my films, not even during Baahubali, as I am getting for Adipurush. There is no room for any kind of mistake for me here. But I have full faith in my director Om Raut. This is my first Bollywood film and Om Raut is a talented commercial director, so I feel I am in safe hands.

Q. How was the experience of working with Saif Ali Khan?

A. Saif is a wonderful person. I will always remember the experience of working with him. If I talk about myself and my co-stars [of south industry], after we giving our shots we used to go and sit in our vans. But here, Saif sir, Amitabh sir don't do that. He stays on the set. Saif sir also goes and stands for the lighting. He stays for fellow actors even after his shots are completed. I had never seen this before.

Q. In most of the films, you are playing 'larger than life' characters. Is it the effect of Baahubali?

A. (Laughs) Yes, since Rajamouli sir gave Baahubali, a lot of big films and 'larger than life' characters came my way. But I am trying to do something different; like a comedy or a love story. But it is important to pay attention to the commercial elements as well. I have to try different things, for this I needed to cut down on the budget and my remuneration a lot, which I did for Radhe Shyam also. After Baahubali, I am doing big projects like Salaar, Project K, Adipurush, I know people like me in that way. I also love to see myself in big ticket films, but I also want to experiment.

Q. Are there any plans to make a OTT debut in the coming times?

A. Don't know about the future, but at the moment there is no such planning. Right now my three films are ready, I don't know where they will be released, on OTT or in theatres. OTT has proved beneficial for many films during the COVID period. But what effect it will have in the future, is important to observe.

Q. To end with, have you seen SS Rajamouli's film 'RRR'? Any reaction?

A. I haven't seen the complete film yet, but I know the story and other details. All I would like to say is that everyone in RRR is fantastic and it will be one of the biggest hits of all time.