A recent episode of Weekend with Ramesh, hosted by Ramesh Aravind, saw Sandalwood star Darshan as a guest. During the show, Darshan revealed that, despite being the son of popular Kannada actor Thoogudeepa Srinivas and having a background in the film industry, acting was not an easy ride for him. The actor is known among his fans for his hard work and dedication. During the episode of Weekend with Ramesh, Darshan revealed that his guru in the Kannada film industry is the Janumada Jodi actor Mandya Ramesh. Darshan recalled some fond memories of his early acting days on the show.
Meanwhile, in an interview with a satellite channel, Mandya Ramesh revealed that before becoming an actor, Darshan worked as a light boy on the sets of Janumada Jodi (1996), Mandya Ramesh’s debut movie. He also revealed that Darshan’s career started with a small role in Mahabharatha (1997), appearing in the background of a fight sequence. Recalling the shooting of this scene, Mandya Ramesh said that Darshan hurt his hand during the filming and was bleeding, but that did not stop him from completing the shoot.
Watch a snippet of the show here:
Mandya Ramesh also recollected the time when he roped in a 13-year-old Darshan to play the lead in his stage play Robin Good Fellow, and how they were reprimanded by Darshan’s father for having a teenager in the play.
On their struggle during the early days, Times of India quoted Mandya Ramesh as saying about Darshan in an interview, “We go back a long time and have spent some great times with each other. When we were stationed at the Highland Hotel, we spent almost a month together. Those were his real struggling days; he did a daily soap with Mr S Narayan, did a Tamil film after that, and basically took up anything that came his way. But finally, not many days later, his film Majestic was announced and he rose like a champion after that.”
At present, Darshan has two films in the pipeline - Gandugali Madakari Nayaka and Roberrt.
Roberrt was slated to hit the marquee on April 9, ahead of the Easter weekend, but its release had to be postponed like that of many other films due to the coronavirus. The new release date is yet to be officially announced. Roberrt is directed by Tharun Sudhir, and has three heroines in the lead with Darshan-- Aishwarya Prasad, Asha Bhat and Sonal Monterio. Tollywood star Jagapathy Babu plays the main antagonist in it. The technical crew of Roberrt includes Arjun Janya for music, V Harikrishna for background score and Sudhakar S Raj for camerawork.
Directed by Rajendra Singh Babu, Gandugali Madakari Nayaka is being produced by well-known producer Rockline Venkatesh under his banner. Gandugali Madakari Nayaka is inspired by the historical novel of the same name penned by BL Venu, and we hear that the director has done extensive research to get the characterization right. The technical crew of this film will comprise Hamsalekha for music and Ashok Kashyap for cinematography. The film has Srinivasa Murthy and Doddanna playing important roles as well.