'K.G.F' star Yash on his overnight pan-Indian popularity

K.G.F star Yash says an actor either works his way up the ladder in cinema or becomes an overnight star but he has experienced both sides of the phenomenon in his career.

Yash, whose real name is Naveen Kumar Gowda, made his debut in Kannada industry with Moggina Manasu in 2008 and later delivered many commercial hits, including Modalasala, Rajadhani, Kirataka, Drama, Mr. and Mrs. Ramachari, Masterpiece and Santhu Straight Forward.

But the Prashanth Neel-directed period action film K.G.F: Chapter One changed the course of the 36-year-old actor’s career as he found a wider acceptance from the audiences beyond the Kannada film industry for his role of Rocky, a high-ranking assassin in Mumbai who works his way to the throne of Kolar Gold Fields.

“Generally, an actor gets the opportunity to be an overnight star or he would have earned it gradually, going step by step. So if it doesn’t happen in your debut, then eventually you get it but it takes time.

“I took a lot of time to establish myself and then got the success. After becoming successful in the Kannada industry, I got to know how it feels to be an overnight star with K.G.F. Outside of Karnataka, not many people would have heard about me before K.G.F. But they accepted me. So K.G.F brought that change in my life,” Yash said.

Promoting the native

The actor, who was born in Boovanahalli, a village in Hassan district of Karnataka, said he always wanted to showcase the treasure trove of stories that his native film industry has to offer to the rest of the country and the world.

“My vision since the beginning was to represent my industry and get that due respect from the rest of the country. When Karnataka is doing so well in other fields, I wanted to shine a light on my industry.”

Yash is now back as Rocky for K.G.F: Chapter Two, in which he will go up against Sanjay Dutt’s Adheera.

In the second installment, the character of Rocky has a “different dimension”, the actor said.

“It is more vibrant. I wouldn’t call playing this character a challenge but it was exciting. We created a whole world with chapter one but with chapter two, the layers open up. Because of the way the audience liked the film and made it a success, we had ample resources for chapter two and we have made it an even better movie,” he added.

With the sequel, Yash said the responsibility was to provide an even better experience to the audiences because people wholeheartedly liked K.G.F.

“When you get so much success, it doesn’t mean that you can relax with the work. Success is a responsibility and we have to always think about doing better than the last time.”

Pan-Indian movies

Yash credited the film’s director for making it easy for him to play Rocky.

“As an actor, when you know the nuances of that performance, then you know your job. Once you get a hold of it, then it becomes very natural and easy. And I, especially, get involved in every process.

“I’m involved from the moment the story gets written. This is why I never think about how to say a dialogue. And when I see a writer writing a dialogue, I know the reason behind it and the impact it will have on the story, the characters and the viewers.”

K.G.F: Chapter Two also features Srinidhi Shetty, Raveena Tandon and Prakash Raj. The film is out in UAE theatres.