Ramesh Aravind captured the hearts of people with his hit talk show Weekend with Ramesh when it first aired in August 2014. Now, he is back again with Season 4.
This season the show will feature Raghavendra Rajkumar, Sri Murali and Prema among others. Ramesh, who dons many hats — director, actor, television host, motivational speaker and writer, takes time off to speak about his show and films.
Edited excerpts
How different will this season be from the earlier ones?
It is not too different when it comes to the format or content. The only change you will see will be the set and the fact that I sport a beard this season.
Which celebrity will open Season 4?
We begin with Dharmasthala Dharmadikari D Veerendra Heggade. I am honoured to have him on the show.
Do you ever get emotional during the show? Especially when guests share vulnerable moments and break down?
I feel being an actor helps me control my emotions. Since I am the host, I cannot afford to get emotional. The worst part is, most of them are colleagues and I know each one personally. Hence, it is natural for me to feel an emotional connect. Therefore, I make it a point to hold on to that thin line between being the host and a friend. Knowing each one personally also helps as I can present them as real people and not just celebrities. There is always a concern to not present anyone in bad light, but to let their persona shine through. To be a good host, you have to surrender your ego completely and let the guest be the centre of all the attention.
Tell us about your multi-lingual film Butterfly and Paris Paris.
I always try and interpret a story in my own way. When I saw Queen — the Bollywood film starring Kangana Ranaut, it looked to me like a caterpillar had metamorphosed into a butterfly. Hence, I chose that name for my remake. I am also directing it in Tamil as Paris Paris. The journey was exciting as I got to work with international actors. We have Chinese, French and Italian actors in the cast. This film was more of an adventure than just filmmaking. We filmed in extreme low temperatures, like 5 degrees in France and I was impressed with the way most of them came prepared for their roles, which is not always the case here. The commercial set up in our industry is slightly pampered, I am not complaining (laughs).
What do you feel about the work of Parul Yadav and Kajal Aggarwal?
They are superb. The Kannada version has Parul in the lead, while the Tamil one has Kajal. Both are extraordinary in the way they committed themselves to their roles. The difference in the movies is the manner in which each approached their character without just copying Kangana.
When will the film be released?
We plan to release Butterfly and Paris Paris sometime after the elections and the IPL.
Ramesh the actor, writer, motivational speaker, director and host — which role do you relate to the most?
I feel connected to each one of them, otherwise I would not be doing them at all. One thing I ensure is to commit to every role — be it that of the writer, host or actor. My aim is to excel in every role I take up.
What is your strength as an an entertainer?
An actor has to keep himself updated with his craft. As long as you are committed and surprise people with your innovations at work, you are still part of the game. And, if you are skilled in more than one area in the field of entertainment, your chances of survival are better.
Weekend With Ramesh airs every Saturday on Zee Kannada, starting April 20 at 9.30 pm, with repeat shows on Sundays.