Sri: Tell me your association with your father T. Krishna gaaru?
Gopi: Very little, anDi! He passed away when I was eight years old. That was too young an age to know anything. Like in any other house, we used to be very calm when he was around, and we stayed in the back room if he was in the front room. It is not that he doesn�t like us or that we don�t like him � he used to love us; it was out of respect that we stayed afar!
Sri: Do you have any sisters or brothers?
Gopi: Yes, I have an elder brother and a sister. My elder brother passed away in a car accident while making the film ammaayi kaapuram in 1994. My sister is a dentist in Hyderabad.
Sri: Sorry about your brother. What made you to join in films?
Gopi: When my elder brother died in the car accident, I was studying in Russia. My father�s ambition was that one of us should be in the film industry, and so I entered the industry then. My brother wanted to direct films, �like my father. But I thought of being an actor. Thus, I became a hero with the film toil valapu.
Sri: Did you joined in any institute before joining into the films?
Gopi: No, I didn�t, but I took voice modulation guidance and some training in acting from Kakarala gaaru and J.V. Ramanamurthy gaaru, and went to dance classes with Kala Master in Madras.
Sri: So, you learnt dance from Sree Kala Krishna Master? But, I feel you still need to get better, �like Jr. N.T.R. and Allu Arjun?
Gopi: Please do not compare with them. Jr. N.T.R. learned dance for fourteen years before he came into films. He is a great dancer and Allu Arjun also dances well. I know only film dances and I am no comparison to them. Yes, I still need to learn a lot in that area, I admit.
Sri: In your first film toil valapu, you acted with Sneha, who already did seven films before then. As a fresher, didn�t you felt nervous acting with her?
Gopi: No, I was not nervous. I was confident and did what I was supposed to do. If we feel nervous, we cannot act properly � that�s what I feel. I always aim to do what the director asks me to do. My problem was only dancing with her. She was pretty fast and it was my first film, but I managed it with her help.
***image3***Sri: You entered as a hero, but then why did you shift to villain roles after that?
Gopi: The film I entered with is a love story �like any other hero, but with a message and real-life situations. Though I was appreciated as an actor, my face and body did not suit the lover boy image needed by the role, according to the audience. I do not have a chocolate face (laughs), and so when I heard Teja is looking for a villain role, I went and approached and I was selected in jayam; everyone noticed me with that film.
Sri: You did a pretty good job in nijam too! Don�t you feel your role was too gory in that film? It was disgusting to see you take a blood bath!
Gopi: That�s the nature of the character! I�d do whatever the director asks me to do, as I said. I will not interfere with what he says. Who am I to say? The director is the captain of the film; he knows better than I do. See, after seeing the film, you are discussing my character, and that�s my success! You noticed that I did a good job, and that gives me lot of satisfaction; that�s enough for me.
Sri: Your character in the film is from Telangana region but you do not speak the local slang! Is there any particular reason? Did you try at all?
Gopi: I did try, but was unable to do complete justice to my accent. As I do not want to do a half-full job, I opted for my regular diction. See, if I am doing an incomplete job, people will comment, but if I use the same diction for the whole film, the audience will get adjusted to that. That was the idea!
Sri: Oh, by the way, did you know that your heroine in nijam got married recently �her car was snatched away by her financiers for nonpayment of dues�
Gopi: Who, Raasi?! I never met her after the shooting. And I do not know anything about her marriage or the financiers. After the film shooting, I am a private person, totally.
Sri: Getting back to yaj~nam, why did you choose to work with director Ravi Kumar who gave a disaster film (manasutO�) before?
Gopi: I also gave a flop before. When the producer is willing to make me as a hero again, why not take him as the director? It is basically the producer�s confidence on him; it�s not my decision and so all the credit goes to the producer!
***image1***Sri: Are you happy with him?
Gopi: Yes, I am happy with him! There is no doubt about that.
Sri: What homework did you do for the film?
Gopi: Usually, when a film is offered to me, I will see my character mostly. I try to grasp it and work at home before the shot is called. And, I will work on the set as per the director�s guidance. I am basically a director�s actor.
Sri: Now, the film is a success, and I know that you are getting many offers like Pokuri Babu Rao gaaru told us earlier in a recent interview � that many of the producers are waiting with their hand kerchiefs to book you (smile). What do you feel?
Gopi: There is nothing wrong in that! In this film field, business is with crores of rupees, and so I can understand their point. Everyone cannot be like my uncle Pokuri Babu Rao gaaru. He knows me since I was five years old. So, I am like his son and he does have the courage to make a film with me after a flop. But, other producers cannot do it! I understand their risk; it�s all pretty much okay with me!
Sri: I know there are some prestigious banners too among those offering you films. Do you mind telling which of them you are working on?
Gopi: Nothing is decided yet! Discussions are still going on, and so I cannot say which one I�d be doing. Now, I need to be very careful in selecting the films. At present, I agreed one film with Parachuri Murali for K.L.N. Choudary gaaru.
Sri: All the best and best of luck, Gopi gaarU! Thanks for the interview.
Gopi: Thanks, and you�re welcome!
Acknowledgements: NaChaKi
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