Yours Preethi'ly, SURYAA

With a modest background, he aspired to become a cricketer but soon, his love for dance drew him towards theatre, then to television and eventually to film. Vittal Kamath, who is popularly known as Suryaa in TV soaps, speaks to Bengaluru Chronicle about his journey from cricket to finally making his debut as a male lead in director Ratnaja’s Preethiyalli Sahaja, which is releasing this week.

“Before I ventured into television as a soap artiste, it was in fact, Ratnaja sir who gave me my first break. I portrayed one of the five friends in his earlier film Premism. The character required the ability to dance, and hence I was lucky that I got the brief role. I never had the intention to become an actor as my aim was always to be a choreographer. Though I joined Natana Group run by the popular actor Mandya Ramesh, my only aim was to somehow get an opportunity to get into the film industry as a choreographer,” says Suryaa.

Born in Mangaluru, Suryaa was brought up entirely in Mysuru. “I come from a middle class family. My father is a railway employee. I aspired to become a cricketer, for which there was no financial back up. I could not buy my own sports kit. It was only when the club near my house supported me to practice the sport did I have my first brush with it. However, politics within the local cricketing fraternity never got me any further. But my dance performances in school, college and other places brought me confidence and recognition, which made me fall in love with the art,” he adds.

The actor reveals that it was during one of his plays that a TV show director identified his talent, and that’s how he got into soaps. “I could not say no to the person who gave me my first break in a small role. I never dreamt of becoming a hero. And I strive to portray different roles and characters. Though TV soaps brought me recognition, I feel it’s slightly monotonous. I was initially selected to play the role of Devaraj sir in his younger days in the movie but Ratnaja sir was convinced that I was perfect for the lead role,” Suryaa reveals.

Explaining his shift from dancing to acting, he says, “I wanted to dance and kept searching for opportunities. I met Mandya Ramesh sir, but he asked me to act as there was no space for dance in his dance school. I would work hard day and night to impress him, so that I somehow get an entry into films to fulfill my dreams. Surprisingly, I almost forgot dancing and starting enjoying acting. While performing in theatre, the reaction of the audience is instant. So, whenever I performed a character, the audience would appreciate my acting, which made me a confident actor.”

Suryaa is hoping his hard work will be finally appreciated by the audience. We wish him good luck for a shining start to his sandalwood career.