It Is Not Okay To Normalize Criminal Behavior In Films: Sindhu Sreenivas Murthy

2023 has been a decent year for Kannada cinema in terms of the reach it got and the hits it delivered. While following a year like 2022 which had industry hits like Kantara, 777 Charlie, and KGF: Chapter 2 is a herculean task, the Kannada industry still had only a handful of films that were hits, which began in the second half of the year. One of those hits was Sindhu Sreenivas Murthy’s Aachar & Co.

Sindhu began her film career as an actress, appearing in small roles in independent films such as Brahman Naman and web series such as Die Trying and Better Life Foundation. She was selected for AIB’s First Draft, a screenwriting workshop where she developed her screenplay for Aachar & Co. From the script, the film has now been translated onto the screen.

“Since I wrote the film, I was just very excited to shoot it,” says Sindhu when asked which was the one scene that made her excited to work on during the 'Next Gen Kannada Cinema Adda', “I was looking forward to recreating the ‘60s. I was really excited about the Taj West End scene. I knew that we could not shoot there and we had to cheat it so I was dreaming about that scene every day. It was visually great to see misfit characters who are wearing a saree and the mallige and going to the West End in an auto.”

It seemed like Sindhu dropped onto the scene with Aachar & Co. suddenly without any hint. She also starred in the leading role in the film, which was produced by PRK Productions. She began her stint with the production house when she featured in a supporting role in the Danish Sait-starrer French Biryani. The actress has also ventured into the Telugu industry where she had a supporting role in the indie hit Cinema Bandi. It was surprising for many fans to know that she was a part of these films.

“I am happy to transform for every character,” she says when asked if she ever had to change physically for her roles, “I love it when people see me in French Biryani and go, ‘You are Rahila?’ and they saw my name and went like, ‘How South Indian can you get?’. I like it when it is not a dead giveaway that I am in a lot of places. My goal is to not just be a ‘heroine’ but an actor who brings something different to every role.”

Aachar and Co. was one of the films released in a year where many films in the mainstream spoke about socially relevant issues in a nuanced manner. Kausalya Supraja Rama spoke about toxic masculinity while Daredevil Mustafa spoke about communal harmony. Aachar and Co. also explored domestic violence in the ‘60s and how it can be rectified in 2023.

“There are things such as rape, domestic abuse, etc., that are out of bounds. They are criminal in nature,” she says when asked about the social responsibility of filmmakers when showing unlikeable or grey characters, “What can be explored are things like selfishness, greed, manipulation, and others that exist in the world. But glorifying criminal behavior is wrong. Many films do not show the redemption arc and they do not close that loop. In 2023, it is not okay to normalize criminal behavior. It was not okay in the ‘60s as well but we have more agency now where we can say that we don’t want to be treated like this. I am a human being, not an ‘Animal’.”