He has been giving interviews for hours at a stretch and it isn’t over yet. When Nani settles down for this conversation at a five-star hotel in Hyderabad after a 10-minute break, with a glass of warm water to soothe his throat, he shares that he will be heading to the dubbing studio a little later for a few corrections for his Telugu film Saripodhaa Sanivaaram . The vigilante action drama directed by Vivek Athreya and co-starring SJ Suryah and Priyanka Arul Mohan , releasing on August 29, is titled Surya’s Saturday in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada.
In his career spanning 16 years, Nani has worked on two to three films on average each year, with short breaks between films. The industry knows him as someone who eats, breathes and lives cinema. Is it this passion for cinema or the urge to wake up and go to work each day that keeps him going? It is a combination of both, he says, “The love for cinema makes me want to wake up and go to the sets each day.
If I do not work, I will miss the joy of being a part of cinema.” A background check with a team member of Saripodhaa Sanivaaram reveals that Nani is a stickler for punctuality and stays composed during long, hectic schedules. He is known to work without ego issues, unafraid of being overshadowed by co-actors.
Assistant directors (ADs) and directors often turn to him for creative suggestions and problem-solving. Nani takes the appreciation with a smile and says, “The punctuality aspect is ingrained in me. Today I .