Versatile actor JD Chakravarthy is making his OTT debut with the series Dayaa which is directed by Pavan Sadineni. The show will stream from August 4 on Disney Plus Hotstar. Ramya Nambessan, Eesha Rebba, Kamal Kamajraju, Josh Ravi, and Vishnu Priya played crucial roles. Mahendra Soni produced the series under the SVF banner. Ahead of the release, we had a brief interaction with JD Chakravarthy, and here is the transcript.
What made you be a part of this web series?
I believe that the content is the prince, and the director is the king. I was pretty impressed by Pavan Sadhineni’s narration which is why I gave my nod to act in this web series. If the story is like the plot we have, then building a beautiful house in it is direction.
How were you approached for Dayaa?
Hotstar approached me. I was not in the mood to act in a series and kept postponing the decision. They persuaded me and also sent me the synopsis. After that, director Pavan Sadineni narrated the story for ten minutes on the phone. He asked me if he should narrate the full script. But I said okay without listening to the full narration. Once RGV said that any director who can tell a story in ten minutes has a solid command over the script.
What is the biggest strength of the Dayaa series?
Director Pavan is the biggest strength of Dayaa. The characters are well-written and unique. It includes roles that will bring recognition to the actors. I became JD with my first film Siva. Also, we remember Sathyaraj in Baahubali as Kattappa. Dayaa is a well-made series with strong characters.
Could you tell us about your role in Dayaa?
I play a freezer van driver in Dayaa. My job is to take fish from one village to another village. The world of Dayaa has been brilliantly established by Pavan for 10-12 minutes from the beginning. One day, the driver of the freezer van sees the dead body of a girl. He does not have the courage to tell the police, but much to his shock, he finds another corpse. These incidents turn the life of the driver upside down.
How do you see Tollywood and Bollywood?
Bollywood is like a neighborhood house to me. That’s why I went there for a while. But my strength is the Telugu film industry. Hence I am doing projects here again. You have an idea about demand and supply in the industry. I am getting a lot of offers, and it would be a lie to say that I am not doing it. But there are some characters which I don’t like playing.
How will you measure stardom on OTT?
It is incorrect to say that stardom cannot be counted in OTT. We look at the collections to decide the verdict of a film. But for OTT, we will see how many people watched a show or a movie. A web series is an excellent way to tell a story in a broader way than a film. OTTs help newcomers. When it comes to the theatres, there will be buyers only for stars’ films.
