Maari character was a stress buster: Dhanush

“We would have come to the roads had not Yuvan Shankar Raja, who was very popular then (and even now), had not given us the biggest hit with my debut film Thullovadhao Ilamai. The film was a blockbuster because of his songs and it gave us an identity. Again his music did wonders in my second film Kadhal Konden,” remarked Dhanush at the promo meet of Maari 2, where he teams up with Yuvan Shankar Raja after a long gap.

“I was a huge fan of Yuvan. But my brother Selva and Yuvan were close and they used to hang around together those days leaving me behind. Yuvan used to have a cool and carefree attitude and he was a big star then. In the late ‘90s and first decade of 2000s several newcomers came and I see a change there but Yuvan still remains in the top slot. There can be only one Yuvan”, added the national award winner.  He was also very proud that Ilayaraja had lent his voice for a song penned by him in Maari 2.

Talking about Maari 2, he said, “It’s a masala commercial entertainer. In my life I feel extremely happy when I transform into Maari. The character helped me to ease out my stress and frustrations in real life.  I didn’t find it difficult to act in Vada Chennai. All the same, it was not an easy task to pull off Maari’s character. He is neither good, nor bad. Thanks to director Balaji Mohan for giving me such a beautiful role. I hope audiences would like him. I have no heart to come out of this character. Maari 3 might happen after Maari 2 becomes a hit.”

The Aadukalam actor also revealed he wanted come in the Maari get-up for the event, but gave it up in the last moment to avoid controversy. Talking about co-star Sai Pallavi he said, “Sai Pallavi is the anchor of Maari 2. She does not accept a film easily. She has done a fantastic job. I think she has acted better than me. I am not trying to flatter her. Unlike me, she does not use glycerin and can cry in emotional scenes.”

On another co-star Varalaxmi, he said, “It is very difficult to work with Varu. She speaks very fast (‘in 12 frames’ in technical terms) I found it tough to match her speed. Somehow, I managed to match her speed. (Laughs). She is a great actress. I have watched her Tharai Thappattai and I was floored.”

The film features an ensemble cast of Dhanush, Sai Pallavi, Varalaxmi, Tovino Thomas, Krishna, Robo Shankar, Aranthangi Nisha, Vinodh among others and is hitting the screens on December 21.