Bhagath Manuel on a roll
Actor Bhagath Manuel, who has had four new releases this month alone, is very happy about the response to his role in Popcorn
Bhagath Manuel, who walked into the heart of Malayalees along with a bunch of fresh faces in Vineeth Sreenivasan’s Malarvadi Arts Club, soon became a hit through the short but significant role as the hopeless romantic Hamza in Thattathin Marayathu. After having graced the big screen every now and then, Bhagath is now on a roll. This month alone, the actor had four releases — the latest being Popcorn directed by Aneesh Upasana.
A happy Bhagath says, “Yes, this month I had four releases — Zoom, Dooram, Syam and Popcorn. I had an important role in Popcorn.” Popcorn, earlier named Kinder Joyee, has Bhagath play one of the titular characters — Joyee. “Joyee is a crooked character but holds friendship very high. Shine (Tom Chacko) plays the other important role of Kinder,” he reveals, adding that he was getting good responses from theatres.
“Dooram was released in only a few theatres, but those who saw the movie gave a good response. Popcorn is doing really well and I am receiving a lot of appreciation.” Bhagath, who has been in the industry for six years, admits that he has seen his share of ups and downs. He was also plagued by a controversy which saw him speaking about a friend who was trying to ruin his career. Asked about the row, he laughs it off, “I didn’t know about that first and when I came to know, I felt, ‘Wow, even I could have enemies’. Competition is there in every field; there is nothing more to it.”
Bhagath has also decided to be selective. “In the past few years, I have been doing all kinds of movies as there were financial constraints. But from now on, I will commit only to good movies.” However, he is comfortable doing supporting roles. “We are a lot safer when we do supporting roles. The hero has a lot of tension and responsibility. So, I am not planning on taking up any hero characters. I love doing serious roles, but haven't got any yet. I love to laugh and that must be why I am getting comic roles,” he says. Bhagath will next be seen in Siddique’s Fukri starring Jayasurya.