My biggest fear was the language'

Arjun Rampal has been to Hyderabad several times for personal reasons, but he found shooting for his debut south film Bhagavanth Kesariin the city an ‘interesting experience.’ “The city has a great vibe and I instantly fell in love with it,” he says, adding that he has shot in the city during the monsoons and also when it was sunny.

The actor loves Hyderabad’s biryani. “I am a foodie but I am also conscious about the calories,” he smiles.

Arjun was surprised when director Anil Ravipudi approached him for the role of a baddie in the Balakrishna-starrer Bhagavanth Kesaribut he was game to come on board. His biggest fear was the language (Telugu) — he wondered whether he could express himself correctly and convincingly. He asked to be given the dialogues in advance. A dedicated assistant director worked with Arjun to explain the meaning ofthe Telugu lines and he even dubbed for his part.

Working with Balakrishna was a great experience, he shares. In fact, the first time Arjun met Balayya was on the latter’s birthday. “When we went to the theatre to watch the film’s teaser, I was blown away by his fan following,” he shares.

Several Hindi actors are working in the South while Telugu films are doing well at the Hindi box office. Arjun feels cross-pollination in industries is great for Indian cinema. “The world has gotten so small and actors are working in various languages and globally too. So, what’s critical is getting to experience different styles of working where you can push your limits as an actor and learn new skill sets. It’s a great time for anyone who is an entertainer to work in cinema,” he stresses.

In terms of storytelling, Arjun observes that South filmmakers are committed and stay true to characters. They create a universe around characters and never deviate from that. “Filmmakers write the characters with a lot of honesty, and never allow actors to go out of character, and that’s a great thing,” he concludes.