'I Know What They Went Through In Pakistan'

'These people got caught in Pakistan, and jailed for a year-and-a-half, their release was delayed due to various political factors that were happening during 2017, 2018 and 2019.'

"I'm looking forward to this film shaping my career in a completely new and positive direction," Naga Chaitanya tells Subhash K Jha about his new film Thandel.

This is the first real-life character of your career. How was the experience?

The experience was very different from any of the previous characters I've played.

This film is inspired from some true events of about 22 fishermen who regularly travel from this village called Srikakulam. They go all the way to Gujarat, take boats on rent from there and go out fishing.

Unfortunately, on one trip, they get caught in Pakistan waters and put in jail.

They are in jail there for about a year-and-a-half and then eventually released.

Did you undertake any research before plunging into your character?

I went down to Srikakulam after the director gave me the idea of the film. It's, in fact, a small town called D Matchilesam.

The film was not fully scripted then, he just told me an idea in a very documentary form.

I met the families, heard their experiences, challenges, what they went through in Pakistan and how their life is at sea.

These interactions gave me a lot of detailing and design for my character.

They're very inspiring people, so they motivated me a lot. They are the real heroes, in a way.

If you listen to their challenges and the way they navigate through it, it's very inspiring.

Tell us about it.

They are out in for almost 25 to 30 days in a month and once they are out there, there's no connect with the world. Even if there is some kind of emergency at home, they don't know about it.

If something happens on the boat, they have to take care of themselves. There's no kind of network.

How did these experiences effect you personally?

So many moments like this really inspired me.

The soul of the film is a love story and we have drawn a few inspirations from what they have said. Obviously, we have put it in a cinematic language.

It was gracious of your Thandel team to approach Sushma Swaraj's daughter to get clearance for using her name and presence in the film.

Yes, we have got an NOC from Bansuri Swaraj for whatever we are using in the film.

I know what the fishermen went through in Pakistan but we are not going exactly as per what happened because of various reasons.

But the fact that these people got caught in Pakistan, and jailed for a year-and-a-half, their release was delayed due to various political factors that were happening during the years 2017, 2018 and 2019.

I believe usually they come out in a few months but their release got delayed because of political conflicts between the countries.

We broadly covered this in the film but did not go into the exact details.

This is also the first time you are playing a rustic character.

Yes. It was a challenging transformation because I'm very different in the way I look and behave. Of course, at the end of the day, it is the actor's job to mould into character.

So this transformation took time.

Like I said, a lot of clarity came to me on that trip to Srikakulam, a lot of notes happened.

I could come back and work with the director and detail this character out.

The biggest challenge about the transformation was the slang. I speak in a Srikakulam slang which is very unique, very different from the Telugu you hear.

Also, their fishing activities like throwing the net and various other activities on the boat.

There was a lot of workshops and rehearsals.

This is your second film with Sai Pallavi.

Working with Sai Pallavi is always amazing.

She complements your performance with the energy she brings on screen.

Also, she's such a transparent actor. She's always on point with her beats and so clear about the character. Very, very involved and immersed in the script at all times.

She's such a pleasure to work with.

Why do you think audiences would want to watch Thandel?

This love story is very different from what we've done before.

The first film Sai and I did together was Love Story where it was more of a boy meets girl and how they journey from there and the conflicts that come in between.

But Thandel opens with us in love and we're going through some conflicts from that point of time. So I would say it's a more mature kind of treatment from what you've seen us in before.

How important is Thandel for your career?

Thandel is extremely important for me.

As an actor, I'm really looking forward to this one.

Just like any other film but more than anything, I've journeyed with this film for almost two years.

A lot of effort has gone into the characterisation, a lot of effort has been put in by me to mould into the character and try to make it as convincing as possible.

I'm looking forward to this film shaping my career in a completely new and positive direction.

Also, this is the biggest production I've been a part of.