Congrats Vikram for winning the
National award. You must be aware
that Kamal Hasan is the other actor
from Tamil cinema to have won the
honour. How have you been influenced
by Kamal?
I am a great fan of Kamal. I
was attracted to filmdom only
having watched his films. I have
learnt a great deal of the nuances
of fine acting from him. If you
watch my early films, his influence
is ever present. Now, as I would
like to grow and mature, I have
evolved my own style. However,
I owe a lot of my honing to Kamal.
You became a mass hero
after a string of commercial hits.
Once into that range, most heroes
churn out four or five films in
a year. In your case, you have
been working on one film(Anniyan)
for close to two years? Will this
not affect your market presence
and disappoint your fans?
See, acting is my passion. I
owe my success to the continued
affection of my fans and I feel
it is my duty to offer them rich
and varied fare. That is why,
I think once they watch Anniyan
they will appreciate that good
films do take a long time. The
effort that has gone into the
making of Anniyan will be reflected
in every frame. It will be a treat
for the viewers.
Tell us about the experience
of working under Shankar in Anniyan.?
Shankar is a master craftsman
and a great taskmaster. He works
with single-minded dedication
and Anniyan has been a great challenge
to him as well. His hard work
has motivated me to do the demanding
role to great perfection. I want
the film to be talked about not
only for Vikram but also for the
director Shankar and the entire
team. I am sure the film will
mark a new chapter in Tamil cinema.
Working under Shankar will always
bring sweet memories.
Your partnership with Bala….
?
Bala and I are great friends.
The professional equation of director
and actor is at a different level
and we are friends in the first
place. We respect each other’s
capabilities. The symbiotic process
has yielded good films and success
to both of us. Both of us went
to Delhi to receive the National
award. Likewise, we went together
to an awards function in Kuwait.
Besides Tamil, you have
done films in Telugu and Malayalam.
Now it seems you are not that
much interested in other languages….?
No, no it is not true. Just
as I would like to concentrate
on Tamil cinema I am open to good
roles in other languages also.
To do a film in these languages,
I have to be convinced fully of
the story. I am doing a film in
Malayalam now. It is directed
by Plassey whose earlier film
Kazhcha was a super hit.
