Sunil Raoh: My next release has a lot of firsts in Kannada films

Actor Sunil Raoh has been a part of Kannada films ever since he was a child, and then transitioned to doing films as an adult as well. He might have slowed down on the number of films he took up in the past couple of years, but his comeback is all set to be a fantasy film, called Thurthu Nirgamana which means emergency exit in Kannada.

“It’s been in the making for three years, including the whole of last year. It’s not a VFX heavy film, but there are some things that have not been seen in Kannada films before, so that way there are a few firsts we have tried. It took some time, and none of it is there just for the sake of it,” he says.

The actor says they have been waiting for it to get a theatrical release, which got stuck due to the Covid 10 pandemic lockdown in 2020. Raoh says, “Just an exclusive OTT release doesn’t make sense, keeping in mind the visuals we have created. It may not be on a grand scale, but once you watch it on the big screen, you will know why we waited for a theatrical release. The visuals will be able to create an experience for the film goer. Everybody will come out saying it’s good they didn’t watch it on a mobile or tablet.”

Having begun his career at the age of five, he further reveals that since he belongs to a family of musicians, the original plan was to just sing for his first film, Elu Suttina Kote. “It was by chance. I sang for a film, and was asked if I would do a role too, and I took to acting till about my high school days. Then once I got back to acting in the first year of college, I did television. In 2003, I made my debut as a leading actor in films. I got a couple of small supporting roles in other films, that’s when I decided I am ready for bigger roles. Thankfully, I got some really good offers, and they worked out well for me. In 2010, I thought I should take a break, and that I was capable of more. I needed to sit back and take a look at where my career was going. It expected it to be a small break, and it ended up being quite a big one. Till about 2017 I was completely away from acting,” confesses Raoh.

He adds that it was indeed a case of waiting for the right films to come his way, and that happened after there was a change in the kind of films being explored. The actor explains, “There was a change happening in Bollywood. What happens in Indian films, is sure to trickle down to Kannada films. A lot more younger, experimental, independent filmmakers with newer thoughts and working styles came up. That’s what I was hoping for and thankfully, that happened. I started again with a web series, Loose Connection in 2017, and then this film. It’s lovely to come back.”