Santhosh, the young Aditha Karikalan from Ponniyin Selvan, has made his debut as a film lead in Double Occupancy, which he says is a “make-or-break” project. “It is a fun entertainer in which, from 6am to 6pm, a person is a woman, and from 6pm to 6am, they turn into a man,” the actor shares.
‘I was supposed to play a bouncer’
From the get-go, Santhosh was invested in shaping his character. “I was initially supposed to play a bouncer, but I felt it was too clichéd. I tried convincing the director that I’d never seen a bartender as a film lead. To prepare, I joined a bartending institute and trained for six months.” Santhosh has also explored action in the film. “This is my first time doing a fight sequence and it’s a wacky one because I’m fighting in heels. For that, I had to figure out stability.”
‘I KNOW I’M NOT BANKABLE YET’
The actor opens up about the uncertainty he faces at this point in his career. “I’m nervous about what people are going to think of me and whether they’ll support me. There’s a lot of self-doubt. I know I’m not bankable yet. The way the industry works, if my film does well, we’ll get more budget for my future projects, and it will become easier to sell myself as an actor. I’m looking forward to seeing what kinds of projects come my way.”
‘PROMOTIONS ARE HARD TO TACKLE’
Getting candid about film marketing today, he says, “Right now, promotions are very hard to tackle. Once a film is handed over to promotion companies, they market it according to what works for their audience, often using clickbaity moments and out-of-context scenes. I don’t agree that any publicity is good publicity, but clearly it works. As an actor, my job is to promote the film through whatever platforms I can. Beyond a point, though, it’s in the hands of the promoters.”
‘THERE ARE SO MANY STORIES I WANT TO DO’
Most of all, Santhosh is looking forward to the road ahead. “I’m really excited because there are so many beautiful stories which I want to do and lots of new directors I want to work with. I have my next two projects lined up. I was supposed to do one of those projects even before Double Occupancy. It’s an interesting, beautiful love story and filming will be done by December.”
