After spreading his charm across the world as Bhallaladeva in this year’s biggest blockbuster movie Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, Rana Daggubati is making waves on the digital space by playing Vikram Sampath, a tech-savvy tycoon in Social being aired on the Viu digital platform.
Talking about the series, Daggubati says: “We all know good things about social media but the things that we are not aware of can be very harmful. Cyber crimes are committed by the people who want to harm you or want to make money out of it. In Social, we will showcase how these crimes are committed and how one can come out of them.”
Social will not only show you the dark side of the social media but will also entertain you to the hilt. Recalling the hard-hitting dialogue from the series, Daggubati says: “‘Technology and Science are not really good or bad. It doesn’t take sides, we do. For the first time, you will see me in such a strong-headed and positive avatar. Sampath is someone who believes in honesty and transparency.”
Foraying into the digital fiction platform, the actor is experimenting on different platforms with different shades of characters. “Every medium has a different format of storytelling and a web series can tell a story which cannot be told on big screen. As a storyteller, my work is to deliver the story to the audience as far as they want to listen to the story.”
Starring Naveen Kasturia and Bollywood actress Priya Banerjee, the story revolves around finding a missing girl who is a victim of cyber crime. The series will have 13 episodes and can be watched in Hindi and Telugu.
As web series is becoming the next big entertainment medium, Daggubati says that venturing into the digital platform is the need of the hour and one can reach out to the masses. “With busy work schedule, people are now interested in watching stories online than going to the theatre. It is the platform which is in your hand and is accessible from anywhere in the world. Also when we shoot a movie it is a three-hour story whereas on web, we can tell a long story unfolding with each episode which interests the audience more,” he opines.
For him, Social is just a stepping stone to the web series and will continue doing web series in future apart from the movies. “This show made me understand the online media better. In future, I wish to do more web series as far as I will keep getting good scripts. I’m too greedy for web series now,” he tells you.
Being a star kid, Daggubati has always been surrounded in the film environment. From shooting to technical work, he has experienced it all in his home. When asked about his views on nepotism he said: “Cinema is a piece of art and it is for everybody, unless you learn it. Nepotism is something that society has to change not the industry. Unless and until you will not encourage your child to become an artist, the scenario will remain the same.”