Rahul Bose on Bhairathi Ranagal: My character’s greatest joy lies in unleashing cruelty

Bhairathi Ranagal, the much-awaited prequel to director Narthan’s Mufti is only days away from hitting theatres and this time around, Century Star Shivarajkumar’s title character is pitted against Rahul Bose. The film, which is a home production for the Kannada star, takes a deep dive into Ranagal’s early years, before he became a feared crime lord and protector of the people of Ronapura.

Ranagal, as it turns out, was a man of the law, an advocate, who exchanges the black suit of the profession for a black shirt and panche outfit, and ditches his pen and files for a machete. But why is he forced to take such a drastic measure. Well, if Rahul’s description of his character from the film is anything to go by, it seems he has much to do with this transition.

Shivarajkumar admits that he was hesitant to play Bhairathi Ranagal in Mufti 

Rahul Bose on playing a 'horrible person' in Bhairathi Ranagal

Talking about his character in the film, Rahul, who returns to Kannada cinema after 8 years, says, “The one word that describes my character is ‘cruelty’; he’s a cruel person. He is cruel to everyone and I’m sure he will be to his family also. He gets pleasure from being cruel – not evil. He is the kind of guy who will stamp on someone who is already down in the dumps. He is a horrible person.”

But what was most interesting, was seeing how someone as cruel as this would react to his downfall. “How will a cruel person react, when he sees the end? That was fascinating,” he says. Rahul added that working with Shivarajkumar is a privilege not many get and he’s one of them. The experience was an immense inspiration and an eye-opener, he says.

Shivarajkumar: I trust the story and the director, irrespective of whether it works or not 

Bhairathi Ranagal releases in theatres on November 15. The film was initially said to be a prequel and sequel to the events of Mufti. Shivarajkumar is paired with Rukmini Vasanth in the film, which also stars Gopalkrishna Deshpande, Chaya Singh, Shabeer Kallarakkal, Madhu Guruswamy, Devaraj, among others.