I was able to understand Bala sir’s vision, says Arun Vijay
Actor Arun Vijay visits the office of DT Next and gets candid about his film Vanangaan, which is hitting the screens in a few hours. He talks about working with director Bala and looks back at his career in the last decade
Arun Vijay (Hemanathan M)
CHENNAI: Dressed in an off-white shirt and sporting a thick moustache, Arun Vijay greets everyone with a huge smile in the campus. Arun Vijay has been enjoying a dream run in films in the last few years and he believes that the streak will continue with Vanangaan. “Vanangaan came to me in pursuit of good scripts. I focus on good stories more than anything and working with Bala sir is something I dreamt of in the initial stages of my career. Though it has taken so many years to come true, it has come at the right time,” says Arun.
National award-winning filmmaker Bala is quite a taskmaster and a disciplinarian when it comes to movie sets. But so is Arun Vijay, who pushes boundaries with each film. “I don’t really know if I would have been able to justify Bala sir’s expectations had he approached me 10 years ago. But now, it was easier for me to understand him as a filmmaker and understand his vision. When he narrated the story, he fed me with character arcs, the mannerisms, the behavioural patterns and the scenes I needed to do my homework for. However, when I went into the sets, the locales, and other characters helped in improvising it. I went into a zone when I played the role and will be in a quiet corner on the sets,” adds the actor.
Arun Vijay from the sets of Vanangaan
Bala’s heroes will have a long standing effect on the character they play even after wrapping up the shoot and Arun Vijay is no exception. “He clearly told me it would take at least four months for me to emerge from it. I also had Retta Thala’s shoot. It was challenging for me to juggle between these films. Somehow, I managed to finish Retta Thala as well,” Arun Vijay remarks.
The actor underwent an injury while performing a stunt sequence in Vanangaan. “I wasn’t even hitting the gym while shooting for the film because Bala sir wanted me to be a bit flabby for the role. My body language had to be free flowing. I also had a lot of running to do. But my previous fitness regime helped me with quick recovery,” he says with a smile.
After Yennai Arindhaal in 2015, Arun Vijay hasn’t looked back. His success spree has continued and he attributes it to things he experienced before that. “I went through a lot before 2015. My experiences, my choice of scripts and what people told me helped me in becoming a better person and an actor. I want to do films for all sections of the audience and I will continue to raise the bar with each of my upcoming films,” he signs off.