I had to get my door lock repaired which led me to sharing the location & postal address after I spoke to Raju on the mobile. And to share location, I saved his number, was amused to see his WhatsApp Display Pic (DP) of a mythological character in Theatre/Play get up rather than the usual regular pic which we all are used to perhaps.
The polite & friendly Raju H.S came at the appointed time & did the needful. I was curious & asked about the DP & was pleasantly surprised he is a theatre artist too other than working with Europa Locks since the last 20 years.
He hails from Shivamogga where, when in school he played the son of Kittur Rani Chenamma in the annual day,he was in his VIth grade then & he used to love doing mimicry too. Post his Xth he did his ITI & shifted to Bangalore for work.
His childhood interest & craze for theatre & acting led him to join a theatre group Roopantara almost 2 decades back. This theatre group currently has about 45 members including 12 ladies.All are professionals with a day job & the passion for acting after office hours & weekend binds them together.
In 1999, Raju performed for the 1st time as part of a professional theatre at Ravindra Kalakshetra,Bengaluru in the play Madara Chennaiah.As part of his theatre group, he has performed across India in more than 120 Kannada Plays. He has also acted in about 6 movies (his first Kannada movie Kalavu was along with Umashree in 2013).He has also been part of advertisements for brands like Ola & Amruthanoni.
Giri Nagar resident Raju’s mother, wife Mangala (Maths & Hindi Teacher) & school going daughters Vidya & Usha never miss to be part of the audience when he is performing & have always been his best critic & supporters for his passion for Cinema & Theatre.
Through his Play Mussanjeya Katha Prasanga where he has performed as a Mad-man has always given him the best of recognition & laurels.His favorite though is that of a Poojari role which he has enjoyed playing.
50 year old Raju says characters that he portrays on stage are quite often an inspiration from the varied clients he meets from 9am to 6pm,Mon-Sat during his job. He is able to grasp their peculiarities, behaviour & quite often how they react during crisis (as quite often if locks/doors are stuck it creates havoc in most houses !).
With more than 15+ Awards & recognition to his credit, Raju feels his best is yet to come & there are many more milestones to achieve in his Professional & Personal Life. The adrenaline rush that you get when on stage & audience appreciation keeps him going back to theatre. Raju is truly an inspiration for all of us who tend to take refuge in the fact that we don’t have time for our hobby/passion. Go ahead Unlock your potential !