I like how Bollywood is a unit, says Rana
Rana Daggubati has acted in Hindi films such as Dum Maro Dum (2011) and Baby (2015) besides working in regional language films. Talking about his experience in Hindi cinema, he says it’s changing with a lot of young talent pouring in. “There are a lot of younger people, who are educated in cinema, and are coming to the Hindi film space. Hence, you get to see newer kinds of films. I like how Bollywood is a unit, whether it’s award shows, events, or any of the things attached to the industry — all actors come together and participate as a community,” says the Bahubali actor.
Ask him about the things he picked up working in B-Town and he says, “They were many things I learnt from the Hindi film industry that I could apply back home (South). The understanding of how agencies work, we had heard that only in [context with] Hollywood earlier. It (Bollywood) is more structured because of the influx of the corporates in Hindi filmdom. So that structure has trickled down from the West, which Mumbai (industry) picked up very well, to be more organised. Also, Hindi cinema has taken marketing movies to a different level.”
On prodding if he felt included in the industry during his B-Town debut, Rana says that he has always been part of the movie business. “The method and the madness of being in films is pretty much the same [across India]. All of us are actually movielovers, which is why we are in the movies. That doesn’t really change. I can successfully say I am the most connected actor in terms of Hindi, Tamil and Telugu cinemas. For me, it’s all been very seamless. I have great set of friends in Mumbai and Hyderabad. Some are from the movies, some are not. That keeps me going wherever I am,” says The Ghazi Attack (2016) actor.