Daaku Maharaj’s Bablu Singh Thakur, Rishi, on why he played antagonist in Balakrishna’s film

Kannada actor Rishi joined the list of Sandalwood heroes, who’ve played antagonist in another industry, like, for instance Sudeep (Eega), Duniya Vijay (Veera Simha Reddy), Tarak Ponnappa (Pushpa 2), etc., when he played Bablu Singh Thakur in Nandamuri Balakrishna’s Daaku Maharaj.

Although Rishi’s introduction to the Telugu industry was as a character with grey shades in the series Shaitaan, it was still a show revolving around him. So, when the offer to star in Daaku Maharaj came, Rishi had concerns about playing an antagonist when he was doing protagonist roles in Kannada cinema. What won him over, though, was that director Bobby Kolli and his team, had a presentation of how his character would be portrayed, including sketches of his look, etc.

Also read: Daaku Maharaaj Review: Balakrishna's entertaining mass avatar dethrones the predictable storyline 

Speaking to Kairam Vaashi during the promotions of his next in Kannada, Rudhra Garuda Purana, which opens in theatres on January 24, Rishi addressed why he took up Daaku Maharaj, even though he was not the primary antagonist. “When I expressed my concern, Bobby Kolli’s immediate response was to trust him and that I would not regret being a part of the film. The way he said it inspired confidence, which, paired with the fact that they had already extensively worked on my character, was why I decided to do it,” he said.

The actor adds that another important factor was that in doing a Telugu film, he did not have to worry about anything other than his performance. “If you put aside all thoughts about positioning your image, etc., you can just go act and come back. In Kannada cinema, since I play protagonist, you have to think about multiple other aspects apart from doing justice to your role. Acting is reduced to 20% of your work, while 80% is about mounting the project,” Rishi explained.

Read also: Rishi on Rudhra Garuda Purana: The mystery of the bus 17A Kaveri will evoke a lot of questions 

In Rudhra Garuda Purana, Rishi plays Inspector Rudhra, who has to investigate a missing person’s case, which is complicated by the possibility of dark magic involved, what with a bus that’s been inoperative for a quarter of the century in the mix.