Getting to the Karal' of things

When he picked up the phone for our interview call, Balu Varghese was a bit tired from his 24-hour long journey visiting theatres in four districts.. His recent release is Kavi Udheshichath, where he plays the role of Asif Ali’s close friend Karal, is getting him rave reviews. The character is a part of a club named Gangs at their village — Allimoola and it has helped him change the image of a ‘new-gen’ actor. “I am still to come out from the Kochi slang,” he quips. “It is my first out-and-out role of a villager character. In Marubhoomyile Aana, I acted as a rural lad, but he had some modern shades.”

Balu says that he is happy seeing Kavi Udhesichath battling back to success. “It is a film which can entertain all sorts of audiences as it is set against the backdrop of a village, and is embedded with lots of humour. Unfortunately, the film did not get noticed in the first few days as it reached theatres along with big projects but now the film is getting good reports and is being screened to packed movie halls,” says the actor.

He has one more release soon. “Anoop Menon’s upcoming film Sarvopari Palaakaran is yet another interesting role that I have essayed recently. In this film, I act as the son raised by Alencier’s character. Even though they have a father-son relationship, they are like close friends,” says the actor. Balu has decided to take a small break for the pre-production of his cousin Lal Jr’s Honey Bee 2. “Being part of Honey Bee crew was really exciting. Now the sequel of Honey Bee is all set to start rolling. As of now, I have not committed to any other projects as I have joined the director and his crew for its pre-production,” he sums up.