Don't make movies for me: Vijay Devarakonda

Vijay Devarakonda, who became an overnight star with Pelli Choopulu, is now busy with half a dozen films and his next film, Dwaraka is hitting the screens this Friday. Pelli Choopulu created a huge impact and naturally, expectations are high from the actor. So, does he feel under pressure now? “I signed Dwaraka before Pelli Choopulu released as I really liked the story. I don’t know about market decisions and collections and didn’t choose this script based on expectations. I am doing it because I wanted to,” says Vijay.

Describing Dwaraka, Vijay says that it is the story of a thief, Erra Seenu. “He hides in an apartment to escape from the people and eventually turns into a Baba. The story is about the repercussions of the incident,” says the actor, adding, “The character is inspired by Lord Krishna.”

So, does the film target fake babas? “The name of the apartment is Dwaraka and thus the title. It does not target any babas as it is the story of a thief and how he adapts to the situation.”

Talking about the audience’s expectations from him, he says, “Expectations are there. But I chose acting because I like storytelling and narration. If I was not an actor, I might have been a story writer or director. I never do films because of high expectations as I am not in that race. I can’t put pressure on myself and get confused. I enjoy what I am doing and pick good scripts. The results come on Friday and whatever the consequences, we have to go on.”

Several filmmakers have approached him with typical commercial scripts too. “There are people who told me that it (a film) will take me to the next level. I told them not to make movies for me,” reveals the actor. The actor admits to having no knowledge about the business of films. “However, after interacting with people, I have gained some knowledge about the market.”

He adds further, “If a director comes to me with a script and I like it, then I can take it to a producer, who will immediately agree. That’s the big change that I found.”

The actor recently visited Visakhapatnam, where hundreds of students thronged to see him. “I still don’t know why people want to see the actor’s face as we are just a human being like them,” he says.

Vijay is also getting offers from the Tamil and Malayalam film industries. “But I don’t know the language, and will definitely do them when I learn. I want to do a bilingual once I learn Tamil,” he says.

The actor’s immediate plan is to shift to a new house. “My present house is too congested as people come to see me every day. Even though my parents tell them I am not there, some very cleverly say that they saw my car! So my priority is to shift to a secluded place.”

The actor gets a huge support from his family. “My mother always tells me to eat on time and my father encourages me to do better cinema.”

When asked how he suddenly picked so many good films, he says, “I heard nearly 60 to 70 scripts before selecting seven films.”