Aluva's latest shining star

It seems Aluva has replaced Thiruvananthapuram as the seedbed of M-town’s best. This little town has gifted the industry a huge breed of talents ranging from the Kalabhavan-groomed Dileep, N.F. Varghese and Zainudeen, to latest league of Nivin Pauly, Alphonse Puthren, Siju Wilson, Shabareesh Varma, and Sharafuddeen. The Aluva gang is getting a new entrant called Dheeraj Denny, who is making his debut with not one, but two movies - Sunil Ibrahim’s Y and Abhiram Suresh Unnithan’s Himalayathile Kashmalan.

Interestingly, both movies are not hero-centric; the lead roles are played by a bunch of newcomers. "But I am fortunate enough to have bagged two diametrically opposite characters," begins Dheeraj, with his dimpled smile. 

In the suspense thriller Y, he portrays a city guy Arun, who works in an MNC, whereas Himalayathile Kashmalan will see him in the role of a simpleton politician sporting white khadi.

Though a debutant, his face appears very familiar. When asked about it, Dheeraj flashes his dimples again saying, “I have been into modelling since college days and was the face of several brands.” From a theatre-smitten schoolboy, he became a ramp model, which was his only option to stay in the limelight as his college had no space for plays. He walked the ramp for various fashion events and became active in modelling. When a job offer came, he took it up and left for Bengaluru, leaving his heart behind, yearning to be back in the spotlight. 

Soon, he got a call from his friend Vishnu Pradeep who asked Dheeraj to act in his debut short film Engane Thudangum. Dheeraj didn’t think twice and when it came out, appreciations poured in, boosting his confidence. Three-and-a-half years passed with Dheeraj shuttling between his job and passion. Finally, he took a call and chose to stay with acting. He went on to star in short films like Oru Cinemamohi. It was then he came across the casting call for Y and sent his entry. He was called for the audition and later to the acting camp. 

Dheeraj says, “The movie is about three incidents happening over two hours in real time. It’s a gripping, fast-paced narration. The shoot was a great learning platform. I was surprised with director Sunil’s eye for detail; nothing missed his sight, despite the movie having no script.” 

No script? “You wouldn’t believe. We were just told about the situation and reacted accordingly,” he says, adding that being newbies, the shoot was total fun. The only senior actor in Y was Alencier Ley, who played a cop. “During our combination scenes, his grace was so contagious that you automatically react to his performance. You can’t make a wrong move. That is the perk of working with a senior artiste,” he says.

Himalayathile Kashmalan — Dheeraj’s next — is directed by his Y co-star Abhiram. Most of the cast were a part of Y. In a role totally different from that of Arun, Dheeraj plays a Youth Congress member in a village. “I observed a lot of politicians and learned the Thiruvananthapuram slang. It’s a slapstick comedy about how a group of fools make a mountain out of a molehill. As the tagline says, it is the story of a bunch of idiots,” he says with a laugh. 

As the movies gear up for release, Dheeraj is in talks for a couple of projects. Hopeful about his upcoming movies, Dheeraj shares, “For both my movies, the whole shooting happened at night. Literally, I am yet to see daylight!”