Adi actor Ahaana Krishna is chasing quality over quantity: ‘I want to work on films that I can pour my heart and soul into’

Edited excerpts:

What does your latest flick Adi talk about?

Adi portrays a story about a fight, as the title suggests. At some point in our lives, we all would have witnessed or experienced a similar situation, either personally or through someone we know. Thus, the film’s essence will be very relatable to many people. Additionally, the movie blends other elements such as comedy, romance, and drama. Despite being a small film, I am very confident that audiences will relate to the story.

Prasobh Vijayan’s previous directorial ventures were noted for their thriller elements. What about this project drew you in?

Although I hadn’t seen any of Prasobh Vijayan’s previous films when I agreed to work on Adi, the story, screenplay, and narration style of this project immediately grabbed my attention. I was particularly drawn to the character I was offered, Geetika, because she was very interesting, meaty and exciting. Investing time and effort in that role felt meaningful to me. While the fact that Dulquer Salmaan was backing the project was certainly a bonus, ultimately, I decided to take on the film based on its merits and how well the script resonated with me.

You’ve been in the film industry for almost nine years now, and while some of your movies may not have been commercially successful upon release, many of them have gained cult status over time, such as Njan Steve Lopez and Luca. Despite this, you’ve only appeared in a total of six films during this period. In a 2019 interview with The Cue, you mentioned that you hadn’t received many offers post Njan Steve Lopez. Have things changed now? When considering a new project, what do you look for in it, and what is your process for selecting projects?

Regarding the frequency of opportunities I receive, I have to say that there has been no noticeable change. Though I hope it does change after Adi. However, my perspective on things has shifted, as I’ve realised that films aren’t the only source of happiness in my life. When a new project comes my way, I consider whether it has a meaningful purpose or is worth investing my time and effort in. I also look for a sense of direction in the film and explore the nuances of my character to determine if it offers anything interesting. Additionally, I believe that the people involved in making the film are crucial. A film is, I feel, only as good as the people who are making it as they hold the power to make or break it. Although I’ve only done a few films since my debut, my goal is not to do numerous movies, but rather to focus on quality over quantity. I want to work on films that I can pour my heart and soul into, and if a project doesn’t inspire that feeling, I’m not interested in pursuing it.

Thonnal, your music video, received widespread recognition and admiration due to its impressive design and execution. This becomes more fascinating as you are a Visual Communication graduate. Do you have aspirations of directing a feature film in the future?

I have a heartfelt ambition to try my hand at directing films in addition to my acting career. Storytelling is something I truly enjoy, and I feel comfortable executing a project. While I don’t have any concrete plans at the moment, my ultimate goal is to create films that are impactful and meaningful. As soon as I get something meaningful in my head, I would be enthusiastic about pursuing it.

During the pandemic era, you enhanced your YouTube presence, yet it’s fascinating to see that you continue to post Vlogs, videos, and Instagram content frequently despite having other commitments. What motivates you to maintain such consistency on social media platforms, and how does it feed into your film career?

I enjoy being active on all social media platforms where I have accounts. It has become a natural thing for me to create or find content on my phone and present it in an engaging way on social media. I don’t view it as a separate area that I have to put in effort for. Whenever something interesting happens, I try to capture it and present it in a way that suits the format of the platform. I don’t plan out my content for weeks to come, but I’m lucky that things keep happening that I can share. I’m grateful to my audience, who mainly found me through social media, and I want to give them content they enjoy. I respect their choice to follow me and want to make sure they continue to find my content engaging.

During your recent conversation with Dhanya Varma, you mentioned that age is no longer a barrier to ambitions and that society’s thinking has changed significantly in recent years, as a result of which many female actors no longer feel the pressure to achieve success before the age of 30. This is evident by the fact that many of the leading female actors today are in their mid or late 30s, and are receiving great roles. What do you think will happen next in terms of progress in this area? Have you seen any signs of hope within or outside the film industry?

Right now, things appear to be quite promising because, in my opinion, women in their 30s or older are receiving better opportunities than those who are younger. In the past, there was a trend of prioritising young girls in film industries, both ours and others. Many people believed that youngness was the only thing that mattered. Now, things have changed. There is content being written now for people of all ages. This can be seen in the successful careers of actors like Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Manju Warrier, Rima Kallingal, and Parvathy Thiruvothu. It’s incredibly inspiring. Age is one of the most significant of these obstacles that we are gradually removing. For example, in the film Gehraiyaan, Deepika Padukone was cast opposite a man 10 years younger than her. They were not shown as “a younger boy and an older girl”. They were cast in an extremely common scenario. People are now being valued for what they bring to the table and their screen age. If a 40-year-old actor can convincingly play the role of a 27-year-old, then why not? In our industry, male actors have been doing it for a very long time. There is no reason why a female actor cannot do the same. It’s a great time to be an actor as these changes are happening.

Building on the previous question, it seems that while Malayalam cinema had strong female characters in its golden era of the 70s and 80s, this was lost in the 90s and worsened in the 2000s. However, there appears to be a slow but positive change now, as production houses and audiences are showing interest in films headlined by women as protagonists and makers. What do you think about this shift?

In my opinion, whether a film is led by a male or female actor isn’t the most crucial factor. What matters is that the actor should be able to attract audiences and generate profits. I don’t think a person being a man or a woman matters there. However, for a long time, men have had more opportunities to prove themselves in the industry. For anybody to prove their mettle or grow higher, they need opportunities, right? After many years of things not being so favourable for women actors, things are changing now. Recently, there has been a positive shift, with more production houses investing in films with female leads. But returning to the point I made before, it serves no purpose to approach someone and ask them to make a film with us simply because we are women. We need to keep working hard on ourselves and get to the point where our name means business and then people would want to work with us. But reaching that point might be more difficult for us. However, the levels of difficulty, I’m sure will get lesser in the coming years.

In the past, your comments on certain matters, notably the one regarding the announcement of lockdown in Thiruvananthapuram, caused a rift on social media. Even your video on cyberbullying raked up controversy. You later issued an apology. Have these events had a significant impact on your life? Have they influenced your beliefs or affected the way you share your opinions on social media?

I cannot say that those incidents had a significant impact on my life since my video ‘Love Letter to Cyberbullies’ would be meaningless if they did. However, it was a difficult phase that we went through. I don’t regret it though, because we grew and became stronger as a result. Even if something like that were to happen again, we now know how far things could go. Sometimes, you only understand things once you have experienced them. However, one thing I learned from those incidents is that you need to be careful with what you say on social media. You should either speak clearly or say nothing at all. This is not necessarily because someone might be offended, but because social media is a place where misunderstandings often occur. Misinterpreted text can quickly turn into controversy and news. Many times, people become aware that there is a problem, but they don’t know what the issue actually is. It’s like playing Chinese whispers. By the time something reaches the last person, the piece of information would have gone through a lot of changes. Or, you would have said something which you meant in one way… but somebody else would have perceived it in another way. So, either you just don’t say anything or you say something extremely elaborate and clear so that there is no room for misinterpretation.

Are you presently engaged in any new endeavours? Or are you currently exploring new ideas?

At the moment, I am not working on any other new projects. I am waiting to see what opportunities arise now with the release of Adi. As I mentioned earlier, I want to put my energy into the films I can do with a lot of love. And I am hoping to find things I can give my love to.