‘The director gave us enough reassurance despite being a newcomer’

Amidst the slew of films hitting the theatres on September 13, Uthsavam is one of the films. Unlike most commercial entertainers, there is a novel-yet-heartfelt premise at the heart of Uthsavam.

Uthsavam is centered on the Surabhi Nataka Mandali and its performers. Legendary actors like Brahmanandam, Nasser and LB Sriram are playing members of the Surabhi troupe.

The film aims to highlight the slow death of performing arts through the journeys of its actors. Amidst this serious plot is the lighter romantic subplot involving the characters played by Regina Cassandra and Dilip Prakash. “I play the daughter of Nasser’s character”, says Regina. Are Regina and Dilip also playing actors? “You have to watch the film to find out”, quips Regina.

Dilip Prakash has made his Kannada debut back in 2017 with Crazy Boy. Uthsavam marks the Telugu debut of this Telugu-Kannada actor, who is originally from Bangalore.

Regina and Dilip wax eloquent about their film’s director Arjun Sai, who is also making his directorial debut with Uthsavam.

“What I particularly watch out in debutant directors is their ability to execute the project to completion, to bring the project to its finish line. Arjun gave me that faith. Filmmaking is filled with challenges both creative and managerial and Arjun could rise to the occasion.”

Dilip chimes in, adding, “The theatre actors in the film will be reciting these long monologues steeped in the puranas and bhagavatham. Arjun is extremely knowledgeable in epics and literature. That gave us a lot of confidence. That is probaby how he could convince so many directors to come work in the film.”