15 April 2022
Hyderabad

Speaking about his ambitious Agent for the first time, director Surender Reddy heaped high praise on the leading light Akhil Akkineni. “Like for every film, we worked hard on this film as well but the man who toiled very hard is Akhil. He has been associated with the film for the past one-and-a-half years and was required on the sets every day. He was there when not required as well. He had to maintain his body in shape for one-and-a-half years; it is difficult, you will get frustrated but he never showed it. He was that dedicated to the project,” the director raved at a press conference about the film in Hyderabad on Saturday.

Continuing in the same vein, he added, “The film will meet the expectations of the audience and Akkineni fans. Akhil’s performance will be on another level in the film. He has more to give as an actor. I could only extract 50 percent from him. He can do every emotion. Tomorrow after watching the film, major credit will go to him. I’ve done the film for him only and I think I’ve done justice to my part 100 percent.”

Effusive in his praise for Malayalam megastar Mammootty, who is playing a supporting turn in the film; Reddy said there’s no Agent without Mammukka. “He will be the highlight of the film. I consider myself lucky to have worked with a megastar like him. He is a great human being. He was extremely cooperative as he was there on sets whenever we needed him. He never troubled us. He is a cinema lover. Thank you Mammukka,” the director pointed out.

Likewise, Dino sir, the director said, “was always available to us”. “You will see a new Dino in the film.”

Smiling, Surender said he had to scold newbie Sakshi Vaidya, who is making her debut with the project, multiple times because she wasn’t performing well. “We would show our frustration to her. (However) she performed like a professional. She never learnt acting nor did we conduct workshops with her. We picked her after going through her Instagram pictures. On the first day, she aced her scenes swiftly. I think she has a bright future,” the director shared.

The director also said the film wouldn’t have been made if it wasn’t for producer Anil Sunkara, who rallied the troops by staying in the background. “He hardly came to the sets twice but he shepherded us. We followed his path,” the director revealed.

click here for the complete coverage of the press meet.