Kalyan Ram hints at Bimbisara 2

The actor plays an evil king in the socio-fantasy entertainer directed by debutant Vashishta Mallidi
Kalyan Ram
Kalyan Ram

Actor Kalyan Ram is a bundle of nerves ahead of the release of his much-awaited socio-fantasy Bimbisara. The 44-year-old actor underwent a dramatic transformation and sported a ripped look to get into the skin of a warrior king. "Director Vashishta (Venu) Mallidi sat with a group of artists and sketched my look. The sketch helped us to figure out how I should look, how thick my beard has to be and how thick my moustache or hair should be, etc. When I gave the look test, I was not satisfied with my looks as I was quite heavy. So I started working out for 45 days and attained a ripped look. In the process, I lost a few kilos and was put on a healthy diet regimen by my personal trainer, who suggested I avoid junk food and eat idly, dosa, basmati rice, and other protein-rich food. Being a foodie, it was tough to maintain this diet, but no complaints as I used to get a cheat day every fortnight," says Kalyan Ram.

Calling Bimbisara the biggest film in his career, the Nandamuri actor says, "I thoroughly enjoyed shooting for the film as it gave me an opportunity to explore myself and unleash the ferocious side of mine on the big screen. I am sure you will see a brand new Kalyan Ram in the film. Although it tells the story of an evil king who becomes noble, it doesn't have any war sequences and big action blocks. It's replete with special effects, and fantasy elements and will certainly be in the zone of Vittalacharya school of filmmaking."

The actor, who plays the role of a warrior king in the film, defines his character as a protagonist with grey shades. "Bimbisara is a character that reflects the complexities of human nature. It is both a hero and a villain and we have left it for the audience to do the guessing on what exactly he is because we have enough material for it to have a sequel. Since it's a fantasy story, it can be made into a franchise by adding new elements," says the Athanokkade actor.

Talking about bringing a larger-than-life story onto celluloid, Kalyan says, "I never thought that I would do a film of this magnitude one day. My father (late Harikrishna) once told me that a story chooses its lead actor and not the other way round. Perhaps, the story of Bimbisara made me feel that I am apt for this role. Above all, I always want to tell stories that touch my heart. One gets excitement out of such scripts and that happened in the case of Bimbisara as well. Thankfully, I have a wonderful team that stood by me."

Produced by NTR Arts, Bimbisara is slated for release on August 5.

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