Venkatesh on Guru: Having cheered for cricketers, I wanted to do a sports drama

Actor Venkatesh’s recent Telugu film, Guru, has done well at the box office. He had also been approached for the Tamil version of the film but couldn’t do it as he was unwell at that time. Audiences have seen the Hindi version of the film, titled Saala Khadoos (2016), starring actor R Madhavan. Since Venkatesh couldn’t do the Tamil film — titled Irudhi Suttru — that role also went to Madhavan.

The film helmed by filmmaker Sudha Kongara is about a bad-tempered boxing coach, who finds potential in a young girl. He trains her and she goes on to become a champion boxer. Ventatesh says: “Telugu film industry doesn’t churn out many sports films. But I was always keen on doing one. So, when Guru was offered to me for the second time I knew that I must do it. In fact, after having cheered for cricketers [in Celebrity Cricket League] I myself wanted to do a sports drama for a long time.”

Venkatesh shares he has a penchant for playing realistic characters. And he feels that at this point in his career he should focus more on such roles.

“Guru doesn’t fall in the category of regular commercial films. The appeal of the story and the character is real. The audience enjoys such films as the emotions seem real — when you watch the boxing coach and his student trying hard to make it big, one can easily connect with their trials and tribulations. As an actor, I feel I should do more such realistic characters and films that have this freshness in them,” adds the actor, who has been a part of Bollywood films such as Anari (1993) and Taqdeerwala (1995).