I turned director because of Jr NTR: Raj Kiran

It has been a long struggle for director Raj Kiran, who made his debut with the hit Geetanjali last year. And now, it will be Tripura — a thriller. “I waited for nearly fifteen years to make my name as director. I entered the industry long ago,” reveals Raj Kiran. Hails from Kaikaluru, Raj Kiran started as co-director with VR Pratap, who introduced actor Jr NTR in 2001.

“Jr NTR was the first person to encourage me. He used to tell me that I have the qualities of a director.” And with that boost, Raj Kiran pitched a script to the actor himself. “After hearing my narration he asked me many times to come up with a good story for him. He even told me to meet a big producer but at the time I didn’t know much about the industry and had no contacts,” says the director.

He had to wait till 2014, for Geetanjali. “But I always thank Jr NTR as he was the first person to encourage me,” says Raj Kiran.

“For Geetanjali too, I met many producers but there was no one ready. Finally, Kona Venkat was impressed and he came forward to produce the film,” says Raj Kiran.

Raj Kiran actually wanted actress Swathi for Geetanjali but at the time the actress cited non-availability of dates and instead, Anjali was cast. But in a very funny way though, Swathi is now taking Tripura from Anjali because the latter is busy. Writer Kona Venkat is providing screenplay for the film. “Kona Venkat helped me a lot during my first film. He actually knows a lot about direction and other technicalities,” he reveals.

And did he meet Jr NTR later? “No. He is a superstar now. But I just want to meet him once to say thank you,” says Raj Kiran.