OI EXCLUSIVE | Dulquer On Working With Mammooty: ‘I Want To But…’

His onscreen charisma and off-screen charm have made him the ultimate poster boy of romance. However, it seems the national heartthrob Dulquer Salman wants to break away from this image and wants to keep surprising his audience. In his own words, an unpredictable filmography keeps the interest in an actor's work.

"I just turned 40, and in the next decade, I can't still be the romantic hero. I am not fully averse to it, but now if I have to do something it has to be timeless and memorable. If I stay in that zone, which is very comfortable for me, I will not be challenging myself, nor will I give the audience a chance to see me in a different light or role. I did an epic romantic film in that genre, (the 2022 blockbuster 'Sita Raman'), so something needs to top that".

It has been an eventful year for the actor, who made his digital debut in Raj and DK's gangster comedy 'Guns and Gulaabs' set in the 90s. He confesses that apart from being a fan of Raj & DK's body of work, it was also the original concept of the show which drew him in.

"I guess this was one of the few things left for me to debut in. It wasn't like I was looking to do a series, some had come my way, and some were remakes. But, when this came it seemed so original, and authentic. I feel all actors are keen to work in this space since you can do complete justice to your character"

Though his much-anticipated gangster drama 'Kings of Kotha' opened to mixed reviews, a weak script failed to capture what it set out for or the superstardom of its lead actor. But as he has always maintained his pursuit has always been to seek authentic content. He says though he is drawn to off-centre themes and venturing into unknown territories, one never knows how it would be accepted, since the audience is very discerning now. 'Whenever I attempt anything different it gives me courage, but I also understand the current mood, audiences' tastes are changing, and they are getting original content from across the world. You cannot take them for granted".

He is all set to collaborate again with his 'OK Kanmani' director Mani Ratnam for the much-awaited 'KH234', which also marks his first collaboration with legend Kamal Haasan. But, when you ask him about working with another legend, his father the iconic Mammooty, he says it's been on his wish list for a while.

"Collaborating with him is something I want to do. I think he is very proud that I have managed to carve my niche, made my name and found my cinema. He is off the thought that if we both come together it may dilute that. There should at least be one film with both of us in it together, even though we may not share the same frame. As a fanboy, I want to be in a film with him, and he just responds with, "we will see".

But do father and son have conversations on cinema and does he take feedback from his father regarding work? "It is a good place, we are actors in the same family, and we are like equals. if I like a script, I run it past him to get an opinion, similarly, he does with same with me, to get a younger perspective on it. We have those discussions, now after 12 years when he sees me doing something, he will say - I see you are doing this a lot, it is getting predictable. But he is very stubborn about not interfering, meddling, mentoring, or telling me what to do. He feels one should learn it on the way and that the best way".

All set to join Nag Ashwin's epic saga 'Kalki 2898 AD' starring Prabhas and Deepika Padukone, he is also collaborating with Rana Daggubati and co-producing 'Kaantha', which will also star him.

"I turned producer to give my films all that they need. All the money spent should be for the screens, give it the best release, market and distribute it properly. These are things I want to do to protect the films so that they reach their maximum potential. We start 'Kantha', soon after both these releases. It is something I had heard way back in 2019, it was written by Selva. This is the story that kept coming back to me, initially when I saw the pitch, I felt it was something I had done before, and was not too keen on. But friends and many sources kept telling me to meet them and go through it again, there is something in here. Subsequently, it went to Rana, and he called me saying I am thinking of producing this, and I was like let me just meet them. It is something I am very excited about, it is very ambitious for me as an actor and in terms of the narrative, it is unlike anything we have on the floors right now. It is period, and that is the most I can give out right now"

With an exciting 2024 ahead, when asked if also plans to sing in his future films, he responds with a hearty laugh "I am mentally done with singing, a lot of the time it is out of tune and made to look like a marketing tool. I am not against it, but a lot of times I feel when the song is great, why deny the audience to hear it from a talented, gifted actual singer, why should I come in and spoil it".