Donning different hats

Film and television actress, scriptwriter, and creative director Ranjani Raghavan’s interests are wide-ranging. She expands her boundaries to include another role — author

By Ranjani Govind

It’s a positive phase in the publishing world, declared Bahuroopi Publishers when the officials shared that Kannada actress Ranjani Raghavan’s first book of Kannada short stories Kathe Dabbi created a record of sorts with the first 1000 copies booked even as the launch was announced in September. “But that’s not all. In about eight weeks of the launch Kathe Dabbi has sold 5000+ copies and has now entered into its sixth round of print. Seventy-five percent of the buyers are young students and professionals who wanted to ‘read’ what Ranjani the ‘onscreen teacher’ offers,” says publisher GN Mohan, adding that this trend defies the “slow buying patterns” of the pandemic mood.

Ask the author Ranjani Raghavan how she feels (the actress who shot to fame after her years of acting in the popular TV serial Putta Gowri Maduve, and now essaying the most-loved Kannada teacher Bhuvaneshwari opposite actor Kiran Raj in Kannadati) and she seems grounded. “It’s a great start to a new journey with my pen. I never expected that people who connected with me on-screen would show an equal interest in my writing. I am pleasantly silenced to see the print order going uphill!” she says.

What does the book have that is generating this unprecedented response? “God has been kind, just as Putta Gowri Maduve paved the way for years together to initially help prove my acting worth on the small screen, Kannadati also is garnering good viewership because of its content. And my big venture into writing too has flagged off well,” says Ranjani.

The stories in her book were first published in the digital magazine Avadhi Mag as a series that got a good response. Was her love for writing short stories in Kannada incidental, after her foray into screenplay during her TV acting? “I have had the habit of writing travel diaries, memoirs, and penning small stories, but for the first time, my short stories were published and the whole experience was incredible.

“Just as Friday movie releases get me on edge, every Friday, earlier this year, when the story got published, I would be looking forward to public responses. People can access them all online to know the beautiful ‘connect’ brought about,” she says. “These stories came under one umbrella in Kathe Dabbi now. Most of them are weaved with wide-ranging ‘emotions,’ something that mirrors human reactions to certain circumstances,” says Ranjani hinting that all stories are based on her experiences and encounters. “That Bahuroopi recognised the writer in me is what I feel blessed about,” she adds.

Talking about writers who have inspired her, Ranjani feels it’s the easy reach as far as language and subject go that make a story powerful. As a votary of Kannada language and its richness in culture and literature, she wants to open up with subjects where people get a ‘connect’ with Kannada and its mores. “As far as reaching out is concerned I have appreciated Chetan Bhagat’s approach where he is able to get it across in a language, straightforward and undemanding for comprehension,” she says.

Cab we met

Just as the Hindi flick Jab We Met made a huge impact, Ranjani’s story Cab we met flags off with an upbeat mood when a taxi driver turns a counsellor to his customer on a ride from Malleswaram to the International Airport. Here the emotion brought out is empathy where Ranjani’s portrayal has the cab driver taking it upon himself to assist the engineering professional into thinking positively when she makes it to her flight after much deliberation and delay on the road.

The normal chat that the cab driver Timmesh and Spandana get into during their ride and over coffee and tindi is made simple and affable, never leaning towards a preachy moral lesson. Where Ranjani’s ability to get eloquent is the way she starts off the narrative beginning with the drizzle of the lazy morning helping the driver contemplate on his forlorn life, but soon gets into a different gear of thinking, once he steps into his cab accepting life’s journey.

Multi-tasking is her mantra

Ranjani, 26, a Carnatic and Bhavageethe singer, who holds an MBA in HR and Marketing, started her career with a small role in the television serial Keladi Chenamma. Then came Putta Gowri Maduve that showcased her acting skills. It was a matter of time before she stepped onto the big screen with Rajahamsa and people noticed the fresher.

Ranjani, with a generous hand into