It’s not really about stars; it’s about scripts – Prakash
For a director who possesses a dying habit of giving non-stop blockbusters, Prakash maintains a surprisingly low profile existence. Maybe he believes that his films should do the talking on his behalf or maybe he prefers the comfort of his privacy rather than the media glare. But we believed that the time was just right to catch up with Prakash as his film Gokula, is getting ready to hit the screens this Friday. So, we had a chat with the man who has delivered successful movies such as Rishi, Milana and Vamshi.
The first thing that strikes us about Gokula is that it doesn’t boast of a very big star cast like his earlier two movies (Milana and Vamshi). Although there are plenty of talented artists in Gokula, none of them are crowd pullers like Puneeth Rajkumar. “But my earlier films like Rishi and Shri did not have any big stars either,” says Prakash. “It’s not really about stars; it’s about scripts. In Gokula. we have a very good script which explores the depth of relationships between people. It’s a complete family entertainer and at the end of the day, I want my films to entertain the people. People like Jayant Kaikini, Mano Murthy, Satya Hegde and Harsha have done a wonderful job in the film.”
Talking about his films, how does he deal with the expectations of people after hits like Milana. “But I don’t think in that way,” asserts Prakash. “I am involved in films when I am making them. But once I complete a film, I keep myself detached from that film and move on. I don’t really think about expectations and rather concentrate on giving good entertainers to all the audience.”
“All the audience” is the key phrase here, as Prakash’s focus in his films has been mostly on entertaining the whole family and not particular sections. “Even though Vamshi had an underworld story, there was this powerful backdrop of mother-son relationship in that movie, while Milana dealt with a husband-wife relationship. In fact, Vamshi’s script was too intense for me! I really had to get out of that violent theme after I finished the film,” laughs Prakash. “In Gokula, we deal with the relationship between some orphans and a middle aged couple” maybe this is easier for Prakash to connect with.
And then we think the time is right to ask a question that has always plagued our minds. Even after giving so many back to back hits, why is Prakash not considered to be in the same league as other KFI biggies such as Yogaraj Bhat and Suri? “I can’t really comment on that,” says Prakash. “Maybe it’s in the way you project yourself. You see, I am a person who loves my privacy, and once I finish my work, I love to spend my time privately with my family. Sometimes, I am just happy that people don’t recognize me on the streets!”
His final take on Gokula? “I have always wanted to give films that entertain every section. My films are entertainers at the end of the day and Gokula is no different. I have tried to explore various relationships, and tried to entertain the people at the same time.”
We wish best of luck for his movie and we sign off.
Seems like Praksh doesn’t work much on negative characters in his movies.. None of the villains from his movies have been impressive so for. The villains in his movies are generally stereotyped.. If he works on their characterizations also like he does with hero-heroines, his movies would be even more powerful
Sri and Vamshi were not upto mark.Rest are far better then family entertainers that are coming in Kannada.
I always wanted to ask this question to Prakash, why was Puneet’s character named Vamshi? from what i know, that is a name common among Telugu people, havent met any kannadiga with that name, Anyway i wish his new movie all the best.
A wonderful director.. Milana is one of my all time favorite movies. Within the commercial framework, he comes up with very good family entertainers..