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Nagarjuna pursued Mani Ratnam every day for a month to convince him to do Geethanjali: ‘Was not happy with my films’
On Jagapathi Babu's talk show Jayammu Nischayammu Raa, Nagarjuna spoke about how he convinced Mani Ratnam to work with him.
When Nagarjuna debuted in 1986 with Vikram, many were curious to see what Akkineni Nageswara Rao’s son was capable of. It took a while for the actor to not just prove himself as a capable performer but also a star. On Jagapathi Babu’s talk show Jayammu Nischayammu Raa, Nagarjuna got candid about the beginning of his career, including how he pursued Mani Ratnam for a film.
Nagarjuna on not liking his own films
Nagarjuna told Jagapathi that at the beginning of his career, including his first film, he did not know much about movies, and he relied on his father to show him the way. He said, “Vikram (1986) was my first film; it was a remake of Jackie Shroff’s first film Hero (1983). It worked well purely because people were curious to see how ANR’s son would act. I did around seven films after that, which were for the sake of it. But I got my big break with the mass audience with Aakhari Poratam (1988), and that purely worked because of Raghavendra Rao and Sridevi. I was like a doll in that film.”
He then stated that once he found out where Mani lived, he began following him around in hopes of convincing him to work with him because he wanted to do something he liked. “I was unhappy with my films, and I wanted to do something I liked. I watched Mouna Ragam (1986) and felt like I would do well in a Mani Ratnam film. I knew he lived in Poes Garden in Chennai and that he would go on a walk every day at 6 AM. I pursued him for around a month while he was out on the walk. He would allow me to talk to him for 10 minutes before avoiding me. But during our brief meetings, I convinced him to work with me. That’s when we made Geethanjali (1989),” said Nagarjuna.
About Geethanjali and recent work
Geethanjali wasn’t just a commercial success when it was released, as it ran over 100 days in theatres; it is also considered a cult classic. The film told the story of two terminally ill youngsters named Prakash (Nagarjuna) and Geethanjali (Girija) falling in love. Ilaiyaraaja’s music for the film is still considered a benchmark today. The film was a landmark in Nagarjuna’s career, making him a heartthrob.
After the 2024 Sankranthi film Naa Saami Ranga, Nagarjuna starred in Sekhar Kammula’s Kuberaa and Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Coolie this year. The former film featured him as a disgraced CBI officer named Deepa, while the latter featured him as a gangster named Simon.
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