Chiyaan Vikram is protean and versatile — one of those rare actors who’s able to transpose and transform his persona into eclectic characters that display a wide spectrum of human behaviour and emotions.
Vikram, who constantly rediscovers himself with almost every project, also finds ways to question the ethics of society through the roles he essays, whilst piquing our curiosity — could his latest offering intrigue us further?
Talking about the film 10 Endrathukulla, he shares, “It’s a road adventure; it will be like my earlier movies Dhil and Dhool, full of energy, and constantly ticking. 10 Endrathukulla is one of the important films in my career,” he begins the conversation.
The multitalented actor is known for walking those extra miles to suit the characters, he essays. So, how does he improvise? He laughs on hearing this question and replies, “I have tried something new in 10 Endrathukulla which you have not seen in any of my previous films. The brief given to me by my director Vijay Milton was ‘to look normal but be unique performance wise’. Even as the filmmaker narrates the script to me, my mind simultaneously starts working on the character. I will identify with him in my own way most of the times, unless the director is very specific about the lead protagonist’s looks. For instance, Shankar wanted me to sport a kudumi for that Ambi character in Anniyan — I did that with my own inputs and appreciate the way he gives actors so much space,” recalls Vikram.
The National Award winner gets excited even as you talk about Mani Ratnam. “Mani sir gives you total freedom and lets you interpret the characters the way you want. While making the film Raavanan, we had to explore various looks. We exchanged ideas and finally arrived at a mutual decision. I constantly experiment even if I am not shooting and keep undergoing this constant journey of rediscovering myself,” he quips.
With his love for cars and driving common knowledge, how exciting was it to play a driver in the high-octane action road thriller? Vikram smiles, “Imagine getting a chance to drive for most of the film! It was really amazing and very liberating.”
The actor apparently essayed several dangerous stunts without a body double despite the team wanting him to use a dupe. With more and more money being invested, and fans expecting a lot from him, does he feel such risks are advisable? “Hmmm, I do understand. But sometimes, in a bid to give your best, not only me, many other actors risk their lives during action sequences. There are a few sequences where I drive the car with fire on the tyres, which were quite risky. But, luckily, the shots got cleared without any retakes! We always work with professionals and adhere to proper safety measures while working on action scenes. But we can never keep up with the kind of risks the stuntmen perform during shooting,” he explains.
Vikram adds that he would not take ‘undue risks’ hereafter as the thought of having a family makes him more responsible. The moment you remind him of the recent Nepal earthquake where the film’s team shot for about 40 days just before the disaster, he gets emotional. “More than anything else, it really hurts that an exotic and beautiful place has been devastated by the earthquake. The buildings made of mud have their own old-world charm. We shot in a place called Bhaktapur at the exact spot, which has been affected terribly post the natural calamity. It’s dusty and very difficult to film there — even where Akshay Kumar’s team came to shoot Baby. But the people were simple and very warm and cooperated while we were filming.” When the topic of his much talked about chemistry with Samantha comes up, the actor is all smiles. “I hope you are talking about our on-screen chemistry only! (chuckles) Obviously, the film being in a romantic genre, our onscreen chemistry is of utmost importance. If it works, then the film will work!”
Heaping praises on Samantha, Vikram says, “Lot of people will have the ‘wow’ factor after witnessing Sam’s performance. She has done a great job. Be it her acting or looks, she is a style icon.”
And after quite some coaxing, he also reveals the name of his character in 10 Endrathukulla, “I am called ‘Lord L Das’ — in fact, the whole love story happens because of my intriguing name in the film. My director Vijay Milton is truly the man for any occasion. When DOPs become filmmakers, they become analytical and create impossible situations.
Milton is no different, as he is an admirer of Mani Ratnam sir. Mani sir’s image adorns his phone screensaver, office photos, books and CDs on his shelves everywhere! Since I’m also a great admirer of Mani sir, we bonded well.” The actor says that he has resolved to do at least two films in a year from now onwards. But quiz him about his son Dhruv who is said to be making his debut in films, and he excitedly tells us, “Someone hacked his FB account and circulated the pictures recently. But he was quite kicked when all the images got 20 thousands likes, haha! Dhruv is too young as of now, though he is very talented and definitely a younger version of me. I don’t rule out the possibility of him making it in films in any department. We have given him that kind of freedom to choose his own career. When he was small, we used to ask him what he would like to become – a doctor? A scientist? Pat was his amazing reply, ‘I can study any one of these courses, Dad. But if I become an actor, I can enact all these characters na?!” Like father, like son indeed!
