Actor Karan, who awaits the release of forthcoming Tamil action-thriller “Uchathula Shiva”, believes all that it takes to judge the fate of a film, irrespective of the language, at the box office today is one day.
“One day is all a film has to prove itself at the box office. Having been around for over two decades in the industry, I’ve been part of several silver jubilee films (those that run continuously for 25 weeks in cinemas). It was considered a milestone back then but not anymore,” Karan, who started his career as a child artiste, told IANS.
Elaborating in detail, he said: “Today, if a film succeeds in running continuously for 25 days across theatres, it’s an achievement. It’s the reality and we need to accept it. With multiple releases each week, audiences have options to choose from.”
Known for starring in several Tamil hits of the 1990s such as “Kadhal Kottai”, “Love Today” and “Sollamale”, Karan has no complaints about changing times in filmdom.
“Back then, films were released in fewer screens and you didn’t have five-six films releasing each week. Hence, films enjoyed longer run in cinemas. It’s not the same anymore. Presently, a film is releasing in nearly 300 screens, enabling wide reach, and it will only sustain if the content is good,” he explained.
“When a film is releasing in so many screens on the first day, it helps in recovering one week’s revenue in a single day,” he said.
Karan’s “Uchathula Shiva”, directed by Jaypee, will hit the screens on Friday. It’s coming after two years since his last release.
Asked about the brief hiatus, he said: “It wasn’t planned. When there’s a gap of even two to three months between projects, it usually results in the delay of a project by a few more months. It’s exactly what happened in my case.”
Describing “Uchathula Shiva” as an action-thriller laced with humour, he said it’s a character-driven story.
“The way the film has been made, audiences will only see me as Shiva and not Karan. It’s a strong character-driven script, and it has been treated very realistically. It’s a lively, action entertainer and I performed all the stunts without a body double,” he said.
To catch up with the last two years, Karan wants to work on at least three projects in a year.
“Even if I spend 100 days on a project, I’d be able to work on three films a year. I want to speed up things, do films that’ll appeal to a wider range of audiences,” he said.
The film, produced by Karan’s wife Devi, also stars Neha Ratnakaran, Naren, Illavarasu and Ramesh Khanna.
