Babu Santana says he is not yet ready to deny a stereotyped role

An award-winning actor with more than 70 works on TV, cinema and theater, Babu Santana, 42, has not yet managed to escape the stereotype of outlaw characters who, throughout the history of audiovisual, are usually linked to black actors. And he has controversial feelings about this scenario, since, despite being stereotyped, the roles stood out in the productions.

“I accept these characters as long as they are in the dramaturgy in a strong, meaningful way. I’m also not interested in playing a doctor who will say two things and have no dramaturgical weight in the story. There are two aspects”, he says.

A recurring situation makes him particularly uncomfortable: the small number of blacks (“about two or three”) in the executive area of ​​the meetings he attends in the audiovisual sector. Babu realizes that one thing is linked to another. “While we are outnumbered in these areas of creation, execution, we will still live this drama of accepting roles that put black people in this stereotyped place. [esses papéis]I have to pay my bills.”

The actor cites as an example of change the directors Luciano Vidigal and Luciano Bezerra, from the theater group Nós do Morro – of which Babu is director, in the favela of Vidigal, in Rio. The duo is shooting a feature within the community, with the support of Globo Filmes. “They are peripheral artists and will narrate different things because we are dissatisfied with this current scenario, but only we ourselves will be able to change that.”

For Babu, while changes do not come, black artists need to continue accepting stereotyped characters – at least until they reach a status similar to that of actor and director Lázaro Ramos, who “can renounce the role and remain a citizen”. In the actor’s assessment, Ícaro Silva and Fabrício Boliveira have also reached this level, which he and Raphael Logam are close to reaching.

“We have these people who today manage to transgress the stereotype. We are getting there and soon you will see Babu Santana directing, writing. We already have Babu Santana director of Nós do Morro”, says proudly the actor, who grew up in Vidigal.

Currently, he can be seen in his sixth consecutive season of the series “Os Suburbanos” (Multishow). In the comedy, which brings an amusing look at the routine of the periphery, Babu gives life to Welliton, cousin and stage assistant of the pagodeiro Jefinho, played by Rodrigo Sant’ Anna – for whom he does not hide his admiration. “Rodrigo is one of the greatest comedians of our time”.

The actor is also in the cast of “O Jogo que Mudou a História”, a Globoplay series that tells the story of the drug war in Rio de Janeiro, playing one of the creators of the criminal organization Falange Vermelha. “[A série] provided me with the reunion with many people who started with me in this wave of the favela movie, these stories that were rarely told.”

Fourth in the Big Brother Brasil 20, Babu says that, even without the millionaire award, the reality show changed his life by bringing him visibility and everything positive that comes from the overexposure on the program, such as more opportunities to work with advertising. “I went for all or nothing and the result was very positive. Our BBB was very interesting, not for me, we had a black woman winning [Thelma Assis]. My biggest victory was pointing out the champion as soon as I saw her.”