Raj Zacharias: Actor by default

Kochi: Malayalis know him as the  producer of films like Anwar starring Prithviraj and Paisa Paisa starring Indrajith but to the Tamil audience, he is known as an actor. Raj Zacharias is awaiting the release of his Tamil film Kaduval Paathi Mirugam Paathi which is also a bi-lingual titled as Rahadhari in Telugu. KPMP is a road movie without a hero-heroine concept and he plays one of the travellers in the movie.

Terming his step into tinsel town as one prompted by curiosity more than a passion for acting Raj says, “As a producer I met a lot of people who  asked me why I did not act, though I had no plans of acting at all.”

“I thought to myself that  I should not regret not acting when an opportunity presented itself. I want to tell my children and grandchildren that I acted in  a film!” But being a producer who holds the purse strings is what Raj loves and he candidly says, “I will be a producer until I am 60-70 years!”  

Raj attempted his first film out of curiosity, but one thing lead to another and he has now signed a Telugu film Rakthapadam, a gangster film set in the 90s. He mentions that his friend was looking for a new face and thought that Raj’s face would fit the bill. Asked if he is open to acting in more films after the initial reluctance, Raj admits, “If the package is good, I will act.

Acting, direction and camera work are all part of the filmmaking process and if I feel a look suits me, I would do it. I definitely cannot see me playing the lover boy running around trees romancing a girl but a villain or an action role would suit me fine. Incidentally, most of my friends comment that I have got the right looks to play a villain!”

Friendships are Raj’s prized possessions and he has a long list of friends in the industry. Raj also walked the ramp for Sanjana John’s recent fashion show because of  his friendship with her. The audio launch of KPMP had a lot of his friends from the industry both Mollywood and Kollywood. He says, “They were not a part of the film but they came for me. I am also here acting because my friends asked me to and not for the money.”

Raj is also producing a Malayalam film. “The work is under progress. I was busy, so the project had to be kept aside,” says the actor-producer.