Ishaqzaade climax haunted me for 2 days

After his last two films – ‘Sukumarudu’ and ‘Pyaar Mein Padipoyane’ – took a serious drubbing at the box-office, actor Aadi has finally managed to end his poor streak with ‘Galipatam’, his latest release. “I’m ecstatic,” says the actor as we speak to him on the sidelines of the film’s promotional event on Monday in Hyderabad. “Many people are complimenting the film saying it’s new and bold. At last, I’ve delivered a hit,” he smiles as a fellow journalist interrupts him. “The collections are steady in Visakhapatnam and Ceded. The main screen in Hyderabad, Saptagiri, recorded 85 per cent occupancy on Monday morning,” he opines.

In fact, more than Aadi, it’s his dad Sai Kumar who is rejoicing the success. “He is relieved. He was upset because of my previous films, but reviews of ‘Galipatam’ have cheered him up,” shares Aadi.

More than the film or the performance, it’s the film’s script that has left everyone speechless, feels Aadi. “I have a gut feeling that it will be discussed at length as the word of mouth spreads. It is a film that I will be proud of watching after a decade,” he confides.

To begin with, the actor had no apprehensions to star in the film, a tale of an unhappy married couple who embark on a journey to re-unite with their former love interests, when director Naveen Gandhi narrated it to him last year. “It was something new and I wanted to try it. I was confident the audience would accept new genres,” he says, while adding, “Though some people were not at ease, we discussed the options that lead youth to go a wrong track in the first half. The following half was more of an emotional drama where the couple is portrayed struggling to convince their parents that they are not made for each other.”

The industry too applauded the film, especially the assistant director’s fraternity. “They said they didn’t expect such a film from me. They expected my film to have the regular dance, fights and punch dialogues, but they were extremely happy with the change,” says Aadi as his fancy gadget in hand interrupts the conversation this time around.

Seconds after answering his Tamil-speaking friend about his whereabouts, Aadi says that he is hopeful the industry would come up with more path-breaking ideas like ‘Galipatam’. “They should come up,” he stresses. “I got inspired by ‘Ishaqzaade’; the film’s climax haunted me for two days. It would have tanked here if the (original) makers made it in Telugu and released it with the same climax. However, there should be a day where the same climax will receive a thumbs-up from the Telugu audience. Films like ‘Ishaqzaade’, where the lead pair gets shot in the end, will set a new precedent in the industry,” he observes.

“As far as I’m concerned I will be doing Bollywood-type movies once a year,” he signs off on a high note.