I used to tell Appu that they don’t make men like him anymore: Priya Anand

Just like everyone else in team James, Priya Anand believes that it was special for her to have worked with late Puneeth Rajkumar – who she lovingly calls Appu – in his last film. “Any time spent with Appu is special. Anyone who has met him or who has even watched him from afar and not interacted with him knows Appu to be thoughtful, loving, pleasant, kind and generous. I have many loving memories with him,” she shares.
Priya is all praise for James. “I have always maintained that I am very spoiled in the Kannada film industry, since I got to work with the best from the beginning. Raajakumara was a huge hit for everyone involved and was a joyous event. Which is why I was super thrilled to work with Appu when James was offered to me. My role is very different from the one in Raajakumara. I had told Santhosh Ananddram when working on Raajakumara that it would be a good film. I had the same feeling when working on James. It will be a huge treat for Appu’s fans. It shows him in a way that they love – there is a lot of action, comedy and emotions that is well packaged. The photography by Swamigaru is amazing,” she says.
There are a lot of expectations on the film, one of which is the return of Priya’s pairing with Puneeth. “The film is beyond what our roles are. It is a way to celebrate a true hero, on and off camera. I don’t think anyone cares about how big or small a part they played in the film. Everyone is beyond honoured to be a part of this film. We are all just grateful to have been in this film and spend the time that we did with Appu. He is the best human being I have ever met. I always used to tell Appu that they don’t make men like him anymore. There is something about him that has made him such a huge star, right? He could connect with everyone. Everyone has a story about Appu and that is something that not many can achieve in life. There are a lot of big stars, but there is no one like him,” she states.
Priya also believes that her destiny was the reason she got to work with Puneeth twice. “I always keep thinking about how I got so lucky – a normal, middle-class girl like me came here and got to work on Raajakumara and then James. I can never forget Appu’s smile, which was so genuine and from the heart. It is such a loss and life is so unfair. I will, no matter what, watch James, first day, first show. I know everyone is going to love, love, love watching Appu in this film,” she adds.
The actress, who is juggling shooting with promotions for James, shares, “I am working on Telugu, Hindi and Tamil projects right now. But I cannot wait to do a Kannada film again, since it is my favourite film industry. Everywhere else, I had to work my way up, but I began with the best in Kannada. This makes it special.”