In an exclusive chat with The Pioneer, Naveen Chandra opened up about his remarkable journey as a Pan-Indian actor, his passion for thrillers, and his upcoming projects. With five films ready for release and five more in production, Naveen is one of the busiest actors in the industry, known for his versatility and dedication. He also discussed his ability to speak eight languages, his intense roles in films like Ammu and Blindspot and how his Malayali wife has been a driving force behind many of his thriller choices. As his latest project, Eleven, hits theatres on May 16, Naveen shared his excitement about playing an emotional cop in this gripping investigative thriller
Suresh kavirayani
sureshkavirayani@gmail.com
Naveen Chandra is the epitome of a Pan-Indian actor, known for his rare ability to speak eight languages. As one of the busiest actors in the industry, he has five films ready for release and another five in various stages of production. While many of his peers struggle to complete their projects, Naveen remains on the fast track, consistently delivering compelling performances. He is particularly recognised for his intense roles in thrillers, many of which have been brought to life thanks to the influence of his wife, a Malayali. Naveen has opened up about his career, work ethic and upcoming projects.
Balancing both films and web series, Naveen’s schedule is always packed. His films are known for releasing on time, and his next movie, Eleven, is set to hit the screens tomorrow. Directed by Lokesh Ajls, Eleven is an emotional investigative thriller in which Naveen portrays a cop. “This is an emotional thriller,” Naveen said, describing the project.
He has been known for taking on intense thrillers in recent years, including his previous films Blindspot and Ammu. While he’s been involved in several thrillers, he clarifies that he didn’t set out to only do such roles. “I signed these films a long time ago and now they’re releasing. It’s not that I only wanted to do thrillers, but I’ve always wanted to try a comedy film, which I’ll be doing in the near future,” said the actor.
Eleven is a bilingual film, releasing in both Telugu and Tamil. Naveen explains how the film has been meticulously crafted to ensure the lip-sync and dialogues are perfect in both languages. “We’ve taken great care to shoot in both languages, and the lip-sync for the Telugu dialogues fits perfectly. When you watch this film, you can feel that it’s a Telugu film,” said Naveen. The film premiered in Chennai and received unanimous praise from the audience.
“Thrillers aren’t dependent on a specific lead actor or actress. It’s the director and the writer’s vision that drives the project. Actors provide their intense performances to support them,” he added.
For Naveen, Eleven marks his final portrayal of a cop on screen. He explains that working in both Telugu and Tamil films gives him a significant advantage in connecting with a wider audience. “Many films on OTT are being dubbed in Telugu, but the lip-sync is often not up to the mark. I make sure to dub my own lines in Telugu, Tamil and Kannada to maintain the authenticity of the language,” he said. He also mentioned his desire to dub in Malayalam in the future.
Naveen Chandra stands out in the industry for his remarkable linguistic skills. “I can speak Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, English, Marathi, Punjabi, Malayalam and Bengali. Next, I plan to dub in Malayalam as well,” he said proudly.
Naveen attributes his language skills to growing up in a culturally diverse community. “We should thank our parents for being welcoming and kind to everyone. Growing up, I got the opportunity to mingle with neighbors from different linguistic backgrounds and learn their languages,” he shared. His exposure to various languages and cultures has helped him connect deeply with his audience across regions.
Naveen is married to a Malayali, who has been a significant influence on his career. “My wife worked with directors like Joshi, Siddique and Jeetu Joseph as an assistant director and is also a scriptwriter. We discuss every story that comes to me, and together we decide whether it’s the right fit,” said Naveen, speaking about his wife. He added that many of the intense thrillers he’s done are a result of his wife’s influence, as Malayalam films tend to be more intense and focused on thrillers. “Yes, that’s true,” he said with a smile.
Naveen also mentioned how his intense on-screen characters sometimes lead people to believe he’s a serious person in real life. “After Ammu, many women came to my wife and asked about my behaviour with her. But she always tells them that I’m a very good person in real life and I just portray these intense characters on screen,” Naveen explained.
Naveen has done many intense thrillers and it hasn’t always been easy to shake off the impact of these roles. In the past, he would stay in character even after he left the set. “It affected my mental health and impacted my relationships with my family,” he admitted. However, Naveen has since learned to switch off from his characters once the shoot is over. “After marriage, I made the decision to completely detach from the character once shooting ends. I become normal again and go home,” he said.
Naveen Chandra is expanding his horizons with a new role as a villain in Mass Jathara alongside Ravi Teja. “The makers of Retro approached me to play the villain in that film. I’m a big fan of Suriya and I wanted to do that role, but due to scheduling conflicts, I couldn’t. I was quite disappointed. But then I got a call from Sithara Entertainments about Mass Jathara, and it was Ravi Teja garu who suggested my name for the villain role,” said Naveen.
He’s excited to work with his favourite actor, Ravi Teja and says this role is one of the most exciting and varied in his career. “This is a variety of roles for me and it’s definitely one of the best characters I’ve played, even in terms of my look,” he said.
Naveen acknowledges that his decision to take on more negative roles is part of his strategy to reach a wider audience. “Yes, I want to grow my audience from film to film. I’m playing both lead and negative roles, and I want to do a variety of roles,” he explained. He also expressed his interest in playing different characters, including a gangster and romcom roles.
Naveen Chandra is currently juggling multiple projects. He has five films lined up for release in the coming months, and four more are in various stages of shooting. “I think I’m moving quickly, and thankfully people love my characters,” he said. One of his upcoming projects, directed by Karuna Kumar, is expected to be one of the darkest films of the year. “It’s not an action or violent film, nor is it a ghost story. It’s a psychological horror. We’ve already completed four days of shooting,” he said, adding that Malayalam actress Divya Pillai is his co-star in this film.
“People didn’t like me in films like Ammu and Blindspot, but after this Karuna Kumar film, I think they’ll really hate my character. You’ll understand why I did it once you watch the film,” Naveen teased.
Naveen has also completed a comedy film, something he had been wanting to do for a long time. “Hari Yeleti, who wrote the web series Parampara, came up with a comedy script and Sunil is the other lead actor. I improvised my comedy thanks to Sunil. I’ve seen a few rushes, and I’m quite satisfied with how it turned out,” he said.
He acknowledged that many directors were initially hesitant to offer him comedy roles due to his intense image. “Yes, that’s true. Many directors doubted whether I could do comedy, so they were hesitant to take the risk. But now, with this film, I’ve proven myself,” he said.
Naveen also shared that the second season of Inspector Rishi is on the way, and he has signed a film titled Kaali, which is a realistic action film. “I’ve also signed a film with Sithara Entertainment, where Anand Deverakonda is also involved,” he added. Additionally, he has committed to another film with AK Entertainment, and some of his films are already completed.
