Vijay to play villain

Vijay Kumar popularly known as “Duniya” Vijay is on cloud nine. Vijay, who earned name and fame for his sterling performance in the Kannada movie Duniya more than 15 years ago, is all set to make a debut in Tollywood not as a hero but a villain. In a brief chat, Vijay narrates his journey in Sandalwood to Y Maheswara Reddy.

You, being a hero in Sandalwood, are all set to play a villain character in a Telugu movie. Will it help you?

Yes. I am very happy to get this opportunity. An opportunity to prove my acting skills in a Telugu movie will certainly boost my image and prospects as an artiste. I don’t think playing a villain character in a Telugu movie will become a hurdle for me to remain as a hero in Sandalwood.

What type of villain role are you assigned to play in the Telugu movie?

Director of the movie is yet to provide me those details including whether the villain in that movie will be from a rural area or a city. I prefer to play a performance-oriented character but I am willing to utilize the opportunity given to me to showcase my acting skills.

Have you met Nandamuri Balakrishna who is set to play the lead role in the movie you are assigned to play the villain character?

Yes. I had an opportunity to meet Nandamuri Balakrishna when he was in Bengaluru recently. I felt very happy when Balakrishna sir told me that he is waiting for me to act in that movie. I had watched the Balakrishna-starred movie Muddula Mavayya.

How are you preparing, as a villain, to meet Telugu movie audiences?

I am not doing anything except to put on some more weight. I am not doing workouts at the gym.

How long will you be away from Sandalwood?

I think that I have to allocate four to five months for a Telugu movie. I will be coming to Bengaluru whenever I get time. I don’t mind playing cameo roles in Kannada movies. I can’t afford to ignore the Kannada film industry. Recently I directed the Kannada movie Salaga. It brought me name and fame as a director and actor but it made many Kannada movie directors think that it would be impossible for them to direct me as I had already proved my mettle as a director.

How have your friends, well-wishers and relatives, including your better half, have reacted to your entry into Tollywood?

Fortunately or unfortunately, I do not have many well-wishers in Sandalwood, especially in Gandhinagar, the hub of Kannada film industry. My mother would have been the happiest person if she was alive. My wife Keerthi felt very happy when she came to know about this opportunity. Dialogue writer Maasthi Upparahalli is one of my well-wishers who wished me good luck. There are some people in Gandhinagar who do not like me to prosper as an artiste. Because of such ‘well-wishers’, I lost a few offers to act in Telugu as well as Tamil movies.

You have struggled a lot to establish yourself as an artist in Sandalwood but you were in the news for all wrong reasons. What is the reason?

I would not have been in the news if I was an ordinary person. Maybe, my celebrity status made me an easy target for such propaganda.

What have you learnt as an artiste in the last 15 years?

I had learnt a lot, including patience, during my 15-year career as an artiste in Sandalwood. I acted in around 30 Kannada movies in 15 years.