‘Custody’ actor Naga Chaitanya: ‘I’m happy with my Telugu and Tamil films; they are the audience I like to entertain’

Telugu actor Naga Chaitanya.

Naga Chaitanya, the man needs no introduction. Popularly known as son of actor Akkineni Nagarjuna (’90s Hindi-film audiences will remember him from Shiva, Criminal, Zakhm). Chaitanya made his acting debut with Ye Maya Chesave (2010), directed by Gautham Vasudev Menon, opposite now-former-wife Samantha Ruth Prabhu. Both of them met on the sets of the film and fell in love after working together on a couple of more films. The two got divorced in 2021.

The 36-year-old actor has been part of some notable Tollywood films and, last year, made his Bollywood debut with Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha, which tanked. His last Telugu film Thank You (2022) also tanked at the box office. His latest, however, the bilingual Custody, which released on Friday, is receiving a positive response from Telugu and Tamil audiences. Talking to us in an exclusive interview, Naga Chaitanya opens up about his career, ups and downs, personal life and a lot more. Edited excerpts:

Naga Chaitanya in the just-release Telugu film 'Custody'.

You are playing a cop for the first time. What was it about the role that you liked and how did you prepare for it?

Playing a police officer was so exciting because it was the first time. I loved every single step in the process of stepping into the shoes of an underdog and it was a great experience. For any role that I play, I try to attend the workshops that are held by the director. For this film, I even spent some time with the cops. Doing some research and homework also helped me a lot to prepare for the role. Coming to what I liked about the role, it is the scope I have for performance.

Do you have a favourite copverse or police procedural, domestic or international, that you love or watched to prepare for the role?

Oh yes. I have quite a lot of them. I always loved watching all the Bond series, especially the ones that feature Daniel Craig. And I am a huge fan of (Telugu films) Gharshana (2004), Naandhi (2021), and Shivamani (2003). I haven’t watched anything in particular to prep for the role but, like I said, I met a few cops to know their daily routine, the system, and a lot of other things.

A police officer is one of those roles in which once you click, you’ll get offered more such roles. Do you fear getting typecast or are open to playing the cop, a bad cop even, in the future?

No. I don’t fear it at all. But yes...I am open to playing a bad cop as well. It sounds exciting.

You are also doing a bilingual film for the first time, right? How difficult was it to manage?

Oh, very much. Usually, every scene is okayed only after it comes out well. That may take several takes because it depends on several other aspects and not just the actors. Imagine the same repeating when you have to do it twice — once in Telugu and once in Tamil. This is not for a single scene but for the entire film.

You debuted with a Tamil director (GV Menon), albeit in a Telugu film, and worked with another Tamil director on Custody, is working with Tamil directors any different from those in the Telugu fraternity?

There is no such difference that I have observed. But with Venkat Prabhu and the films of him that I watched, it is the screenplay and the process of filmmaking that makes things easy and different at the same time.

You are also sharing screen space with Arvind Swamy (Roja, Bombay), how was that experience?

What a performer he is! Sharing the screen space with him has been a wonderful experience. Watching him perform with ease is just wow! He always talks about cinema and nothing else. Even on the days we were not shooting, he used to keep in touch and talk about films only. Also, he is a very nice person. He even used to cook for us on the sets.

Why do you think your previous film Thank You tanked? Presumably, you would have high hopes from Custody.

I think it is a story that people could not relate to or connect with. Coming to Custody, I have huge hopes for it. I am sure people love it.

Laal Singh Chaddha was something you never saw coming. Even the result. Did you have high hopes for your Bollywood debut? What was the lesson learnt? Did you get any Bollywood offers after the film?

See... I did Laal Singh Chaddha for Aamir Khan sir. I brought home tons of memories from the sets of the film. And coming to the result...none of us saw it coming. I expected it to be received well by the audiences but other than that, I had no expectations out of it. I am happy with my Telugu and Tamil films because these are the audience I like to work for and entertain. If I get an interesting script from Bollywood, I would do it.

Your mom, Lakshmi, is the daughter of the late producer D Ramanaidu and the sister of actor Venkatesh. Does she help you with script choices? How involved is she in your life, professionally and personally?

No. Mom doesn’t get involved in my work. She watches my films and tells me whether she liked them or not. I hold responsibility for my decisions professionally and personally. But if something goes wrong, I know my parents have my back. They have always been there to support me.

What are your early memories with your father Nagarjuna? Do you have a favourite Nagarjuna film? And one quality about him that you like?

I remember Dad always being busy with film shoots. But whenever he had free time, he used to play cricket and other games with me and Akhil. I like Siva and Shivamani a lot. I even like Manam (2014) because it features three of us with our grandfather. My father is a cool and easygoing person. He doesn’t like to take stress about things. That is what I like the most about him.

As Nagarjuna’s son, an industry elite so to speak, do you ever feel any pressure?

I don’t feel the pressure or burden. But there is always a certain amount of expectations from me.

Why is it that you don’t involve your father in your work?

I would like to take ownership and responsibility for the decisions I make. I cannot be like I take the credit for good things and hold someone else responsible for the bad things. Be it good or bad...I want to learn things by myself. Learn to judge things, learn to grow. If I go and tell my father that I would like to work with this particular director, I know he can do anything to bring him on board for me or Akhil. But we are against it.

You, your father and your half-brother Akhil, three of you are going through a rough phase and desperately need a hit. Do you three discuss the possible scenarios?

We do discuss work at home. But not that much. Not on a note to sit and discuss scenarios. We all are busy with different things in our professional lives and when we meet, we keep working away.

After RRR’s Oscar success, do you wish SS Rajamouli offers you a role, too?

Who wouldn’t want to work with him? I will, for sure, if he offers me a role in his future films.

After your separation, there has been quite a lot of negativity around you. How do you deal with it? Do you get frustrated or do you just let it go? Is it professionally affecting you and your family?

I am over it now. It has been quite some time since our separation and people are still writing about it. It is up to them about what they want to write. I am done with it and do not care about what people talk about me. I am a person who chooses to stay cool and calm and not get affected by things happening around us. I learnt this from my family members only. Professionally...it is not affecting me or my family.

You’ve said that the media is bringing a third person into your life and unnecessarily creating trouble for her, that is Sobhita Dhulipala. She has reacted strongly to it, too. Has it affected your friendship or professional relationship with the said actor?

I have no idea why people are involving a third person who has nothing to do with all of this. I have already made things clear about this and I have nothing else to respond about it.

You seem calm all the time. Do you practise it?

(Laughs) This is what I have been since childhood. I am a calm person. Nothing to practise about it.

But you do lose your cool when Parasuram Petla’s name is mentioned. You’ve said that he wasted your time. What was the disagreement about?

After SVP (Mahesh Babu-starrer Sarkaru Vaari Paata), he narrated a script. We travelled together for quite some time and he worked on the script after a lot of discussions but it never came out the way I wanted or looked at it. That is all about it.

You are an introvert; do you have many friends in the industry? Who would you call your closest pal? And what do you do in your free time?

I have a set of close friends who do not belong to the film industry. Also many know that I share a good rapport with Rana Daggubati who is my cousin. In my free time, I go for long drives in my favourite cars and watch action films.

Tell us about your Pan-Asian cloud kitchen Shoyu. It is running successfully in Hyderabad. How did the idea of starting a cloud kitchen come to you? Do you cook? Many actors are turning entrepreneurs, do you see it as a second-income source?

Shoyu is out of the passion I have for cooking. Because I cook, and love cooking, I wanted the taste of some good food to be introduced to the people I love and fans as well. That is how the idea of Shoyu has come. The second source of income... I don’t look at it as a source of income. It is out of passion and that is how I look at it.