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Question: Quite often you are visiting foreign countries and conducting cultural programmes there. Is it for earning huge money?
Answer: This is one of the gossips about me being spread by some people! They spread the news that I earned this much money through such programmes, I did this, did that and so on! But I don't worry about all these things!
I have earned lakhs and lakhs of Tamil fans throughout the world. If they write to me letters, I send them reply immediately. Thinking that 'Prashanth respects our feelings and hence sends us reply', they again and again send me lots of messages! If they send me e.mail, I send them reply the very next moment.
I spend half of the lakhs of rupees from my earnings for sending replies and my photographs to my fans! Some of the fans, when they visit India, come down to my place and meet me. Many of the fans who fail to meet me, communicate to me, after their return to their respective countries, stating their inability to see me, expressing their regrets for the same!
When I toured the world in connection with the shooting work of
"Jeans", and when I went abroad for shooting for the film"Kaathal
Kavithai", the
visiting crowd of fans there started building up gradually. The idea to conduct
cultural programmes in foreign countries just flashed in my mind while I thought
of myself appearing before the Tamils living there, just to entertain them.Only
on the basis of this, I started arranging for the assembling of all Tamils
living abroad inside an auditorium in their respective countries. There they not
only enjoy my programmes but are able to meet each other
among themselves!
On my part, I become happy by making those Tamils happy. I dance before them. The unique talent of the Tamilian in general gets highlighted in such programmes. All such programmes that I have conducted so far, have proved to be house-full shows! As these have earned good reception, I plan to conduct more such events in the future too!
In 1994, I went along with a 32 member team that included 13 heroines and conducted programme in Colombo. 20,000-strong audience enjoyed it. In 1999, I had been to Malasia and Singapore accompanied by a 75-member team! 30,000 people living in those places were witnessing the extravaganza having been seated at the halls spell-bound!
This year's April month programmes in London were graced by fans, who thronged
the auditorium in thousands! 64 of us entertained them. In the programmes of
Malasia and Singapore I danced with 7 leading heroines. None else has
accomplished this feat! On 15th of coming July, I'm visiting Malasia and
Australia with a 80-member troupe, for staging grand gala programmes there!
It's wrong to say that I'm organising all these for the express purpose of
earning money. I presented many lakhs of rupees from what was collected as
revenue through the cultural programmes conducted there, to the Malasiyan
minister Duththo Samyvel, for the cause of Malasiyan Indian education fund. I
reveal this only now, in order to insist upon the fact that I don't stage such
cultural programmes simply to earn money! Like that I presented to Malasiyan
Siva temple many lakhs of rupees! These two news were published in Malasiyan
journals. I didn't tell about it in Tamilnadu because I don't like such
publicity.
Question: Won't your acting profession get affected because of these programmes which are organised quite often?
Answer: No. The interest I have in acting won't dwindle down at any circumstance! I put into use my extra energy by dancing continually for 25 songs! Even then I don't get tired! This is a boon given to me by God.
Question: It' said that you pressurize the heroines saying that if they come to dance with you in programmes they could be given acting chance to pair with you in your films?
Answer: This is the super joke of the year 2000. Let those speak like this go on
doing like that. I have a market value for me. I don't have the compulsion to
give any assurance to the heroines to make them participate in my cultural
programmes. Moreover I have never personally recommended for any heroine! Only
the suitable heroine for the concerned role and story gets fixed.