'I started as an actor when I was only two-and-a-half years old, so I am not new to attention and the perks of being an actor.'
Teja Sajja is living his dream as his new film Hanu Man has become a huge success.
He admits that Director Prasanth Verma and he faced a lot of struggle to make the film and it finally paid off.
Teja tells Subhash K Jha, "There is a tremendous response from across the country that has taken us by surprise."
First of all, I want to congratulate you for this astounding success.
Thank you, Sir, thank you. I feel I am living in a dream.
I am in the airport now and there are 30-40 people waiting for pictures with me as soon as I finish talking to you.
How do you feel?
Firstly, I am not completely new to success. My earlier film with the same director, Zombie Reddy, was also a success, though nothing like this.
How has Hanu Man changed your life?
There is a tremendous response from across the country that has taken us by surprise. I am getting congratulatory calls from across industries.
It feels very comforting when stars, who had their releases on the same day as Hanu Man, are calling me.
Sivakarthikeyan Sir saw the film and congratulated me.
Dhanush Sir, who had his release (Captain Miller) on the same day as Hanu Man, has seen the film.
Ravi Teja Sir's film was supposed to release on the same day but got postponed at the last minute. He has also been very nice.
Now you are flying to Bengaluru?
Yes. I am going to meet Shivanna Garu Sir (Kannada superstar Shivaraj Kumar).
I am flying down to Bengaluru to seek his blessings and thank him for the support.
That is so thoughtful of you.
I have been a part of the Telugu industry for so long.
I started as an actor when I was only two-and-a-half years old, so I am not new to attention and the perks of being an actor.
What has changed now is the opportunities.
My producers now have the financial clout to narrate bigger stories.
We had big ideas earlier too but were always struggling to get the budgets to match our vision.
Your own financial clout also changes with Hanu Man?
Of course, but my remuneration won't impact the production.
It can, if you decide to become a producer.
No, Sir. That would be too much stress for me.
I am already doing a strenuous job.
I don't want to add to my responsibilities.
How did you land your first role at such a young age?
Sir, it was destiny.
My cousin had taken me to buy some toys at a bookstore.
The director Gunasekhar Sir, who has made Rudramadevi, spotted me at the store.
You were a cute baby?
Yeah yeah, and very agile also. Gunasekhar Sir took my pictures and contacted my parents.
They were taken aback when he offered me a role, as any parent would be if their two year old is offered a film.
What was the role?
I was the son of Chiranjeevi garu.
The film Choodalani Vundi was based on a father-son relationship, so it had a lot of emotion. I had to do a lot of crying and dramatics.
It was a hit way back in 1988. By the time the film released, I was three-and-a-half.
I remember attending the function to celebrate the film's 175 days in theatres.
Now, of course, success is not about 175 days, but Rs 175 crore (Rs 1.75 billion) in the first week.
Which Hanu Man will achieve.
All God's will, Sir. We worked really hard and within a very tight budget.
My director Prasanth Verma and I faced a lot of hardships in making the film.
But it finally paid off.
Our heart was in the right place.
