Exclusive! Vijay Raghavendra turns writer again in Kaddha Chitra: Dare Not Plagiarize

Fresh from the set of his maiden Kannada web series, Hakuna Matata, in which he is playing a crime branch officer, Vijay Raghavendra has already got a set of films lined up to begin work on.

“Yes, there are a few exciting projects that I am working on. For starters there is Kaddha Chitra, which has the tagline ‘Dare Not Plagiarize’, the title of which was announced earlier today. Directed by Suhas Krishna, this film will have me play a writer yet again after Malgudi Days. Only this time, what sets the character apart is that it has slight shades of grey. This film is currently underway,” says Vijay.

By October, the actor will join the set of Ayana maker Gangadhar Salimath’s as-yet-untitled thriller, which follows a murder investigation and has him playing the officer in charge. “I also have a film called Savitri up for release, which was censored recently,” he adds.

With all these acting commitments, has direction taken a backseat? “Yeah, I learnt quite a few things, especially the dos and don’ts, when I did Kismath. My concern is about the don’ts and I would want to correct all that before I direct another film. So, right now, I would rather concentrate on acting and do what I know best. Having said that, I must add that filmmaking is something that excites me, and I will not stop doing it. During Kismath, I faced a few hardships because everything had to be done single-handedly. I must prepare myself before I step behind the camera again. Direction is not something you can do without a concrete plan,” explains Vijay.

What he does not rule out, though, is venturing into production, especially for the OTT scene. “Having ventured into the OTT content market as an actor and seeing the scope and reach it has helps me prepare to get into production and direction. It will happen eventually.