I want to do films for all categories of audience, says actor Atharvaa

CHENNAI: Actor Atharvaa Murali is in the middle of Idhayam Murali’s shoot but he spares time to talk to us about DNA, which is helmed by Nelson Venkatesan of Oru Naal Koothu fame and produced by Olympia Movies. “I was looking to do something different and that is when DNA came up to me. When you hear the word DNA, your mind immediately jumps to genetics or a crime thriller or a cerebral film. But DNA here stands for Divya and Anand,” he opens up.

The actor goes on to divulge more on why this film would intrigue the audience despite the story being centered around two characters. “There’s more to it. Divya played by Nimisha Sajayan and Anand played by me are two people who are rejected by society and even their own families. Together, they sort out their lives. However, DNA, the genetics too take a lead in the story,” Atharvaa smiles. He immediately adds that the movie cannot be restricted to one genre. “Nelson has packed it so well that DNA is not a genre-specific film. It starts off as a family drama and slowly heads towards being a thriller,” he remarks.

The reason behind choosing such scripts according to Atharvaa is that his perception of cinema has changed in the last year. “It has changed to an extent. If you look at cinema in the last decade, horror was one of the most-watched genres and everybody chose to be a part of similar films. Now, people watch any content that is done with honesty. There is no language barrier as well. It is a good to be in the industry now in such interesting times. Hence, I want to do films that will cater to all sections of the audience. DNA is a classic example,” states the actor.

Nelson Venkatesan, who is known for lighthearted movies like Oru Naal Koothu and Monster has also directed a thriller like Farhana and now DNA, a film that would be accepted by all audiences. “Nelson has kept the drama alive till the end. The entire set was organic. Nimisha and I would stay in character even after the scene ends and Nelson being Nelson has retained the shot in the film as well,” says Atharvaa.

The actor has a promising lineup with films like Parasakthi and Idhayam Murali, among others. “DNA will be the start of many good things. I have another film with director Jeeva Shankar in which I play a dual role. Then there is Idhayam Murali, which is a rom-com and not connected to appa’s Idhayam. So in the last one year, it has been exciting to be on the sets because every day there is something interesting happening,” he signs off as he is being called for the shot.