Entha Manchivaadavuraa is not preachy: Kalyan Ram

'Entha Manchivaadavuraa' is set to release on January 15 and, this time, actor Nandamuri Kalyanram and director Satish Vegesna are out to steal the hearts of the family audience. What is the film about? What made him do this film? The '118' actor explains it all in this interview.

What made you accept this genre?

Family entertainer has been one of my favorites. I have done mass and action films in the past. After '118', someone came to me with a thriller.  My question is: How can I keep showing the same expressions in a thriller? I have to do something different. That is when producer and presenter Sivalenka Krishnaprasad asked me to watch 'Oxygen' (Gujarati film) and I did.

Did you like the film? How faithful is 'Entha Manchivaadavuraa' to the original?

I liked the core point of 'Oxygen' but not much otherwise. I listened to the full narration of the script and really loved Satish Vegesna's version. In the original, there is no explanation for the protagonist's behaviour. In our film, it is different. There takes place an incident in his childhood and it affects his personality.

So, what exactly is your character in the movie?

I am a short-film actor in the movie. Due to an incident in his childhood, he resolves to spread positivity. That's what he does as an adult.  

How was it working with Satish Vegesna?

I loved his 'Shatamanam Bhavati'. After watching it, my wife told me I should do family films like that one. I had been waiting for a script like this. Vegesna is a cool director, someone as awesome as Puri Jagannadh and Anil Ravipudi.

In films with good-natured protagonists, the tone of the film is always preachy. Is it the same with 'EM' as well?

Not at all. The central message of the film is inherent and not made explicit. The protagonist enters the lives of different characters and brings about a positive change. How he does is the most interesting aspect.

Are you afraid of the Sankranthi competition?

Not at all.  Our film targets the family audience and we couldn't have asked for a more appropriate release.