The highly acclaimed Tamil director Vetrimaaran’s Viduthalai Part 1 is a haunting, searing and powerful exploration of power and its misuse by the empowered.
Vijay says he had to be part of this project. “I wanted to work with Vetrimaaran for the longest time. He believes cinema to be a tool of social comment, just as I do. We clicked from the moment he came to me with this idea.”
Viduthalai has been one of Vijay’s most fulfilling films to date. “I don’t believe cinema is only for entertainment, although let me tell you, I love doing out-and-out entertainers and have done my share of them. But at the same time I feel there has to be something more, some idea for the audience to go home with. Films that have something more to offer than entertainment have stayed alive. It happens with songs also. I love some of the songs of Dev Anand and Shammi Kapoor. They are rich with poetry about life.”
Luckily for Vijay, Vidhuthalai Part 1 (a second part is on the way) has proved a box office success before coming to the OTT.
“We must never take the audience for granted, or presume that they only accept a certain kind of cinema. The success of a film like Vidhuthalai is proof of the audiences’ maturity. It encourages me to do more such films,” says Vijay whose performances in Tamil films like Vikram Vedha, ’96 and Pizza have earned him a place among the best contemporary actors of India.
Shooting Vidhuthalai was emotionally and physically gruelling. “We shot in the Sathaymangalam forest for three months. I developed an infection that made the skin itch constantly. When I asked the director about it, he said everyone in the team had it. It still persists so long after the shooting. But I don’t want to make it sound like some great big dedication to the art and all that. Physical and emotional challenges are part of my job. There is no need to get self-congratulatory about them.”
Vijay says shooting on outdoor locations is a very healthy practice for getting into the skin of a film and character. “During the shooting of Vidhulthalai we all became one big family in the forest away from home. The success of the film is a big high for me personally. It encourages me to try something new again.”
