Talking about Vijay, I have to say that
I myself am a huge fan of his. His acting
and dancing histrionics have taken my breath
away. The very fact that a nearly 35 year-old
father of two has so much zest, energy and
'youngness' is utterly impressive. But then
again, a lot of things must be corrected
about this celebrity if his films were to
ever reach an international level that is
beyond just commercial success within Tamil
Nadu.
1. Selection of Scripts/Stories/Screenplay
- Look at his movies over the past few years.
All were commercial, typical run-of-the-mill
masala potboilers. All except ATM and Sachien.
And this may not be largely attributed to
just Vijay's lack of taste for scripts,
but also to his fan’s non-acceptance
of him in non-action related roles. Vijay's
selection of script is largely in contrast
to that of Suriya's. The contrast is Entertainment
Vs Quality. This does not mean one should
compromise one for the other. Both should
be major aspects of a movie’s success,
but one should not overpower the other.
When Vijay did Sachien, I thought his acting
was cute, awesome and natural. Sadly, the
movie bombed at the box office. But when
he took on the monotonous roles in Thirupachi,
Gillie and Pokkiri, they ruled the roost.
Of course it is well-known that even his
fans could not save him from the immensely
ridiculously plotted Kuruvi, Villu and Aadi.
So it must be admitted that even his fans
give more importance to story than Vijay
himself. So he should probably stop making
movies that he thinks will and should cater
to his fans, and not bank on his star power
all the time. Vijay badly needs counseling
on selecting the right scripts that are
able to show more of acting skills rather
than his larger-than-life image. And remakes
are not the way to do it. The Vijay that
we saw in Thullatha Manamum Thullum, Sachien
and Madura needs to come back - and that
too badly. Gautham Menon, Shankar, Mani
Ratnam are the directors that could probably
give his career a saving grace.
2. Looks, Styling, Wardrobe
- Vijay's idea of fashion is highly pitiful
and lousy. His sense of dressing and unkempt
looks are a put off. He needs a hair stylist
urgently and that too a good one. He should
take dressing tips/lessons from Korean Drama
Actors. Honestly, Vijay's lack of style
in terms of wardrobe shows him off as anything
but a superstar. He looks dirty and messy,
a look that he thinks that his fans probably
love or accept, but this look is so internationally
unfriendly. It simply lacks standards. His
dressing in the second half of Villu was
stylish, but his unkempt looks cancelled
this style out. He tried to put on a playboy
image but simply failed to. His Ramarajan
colored bellbottom pants were prevalent
only in the 80's but he refuses to give
them up. The ugly chest-hair and beard are
all minus points. Being in Singapore and
living with other races, it is hard to show
off to my Chinese and Malay friends what
my favorite Tamil Hero looks like because
although Vijay is so strikingly youth-looking
and handsome, his lack of grooming plays
him out. Whereas Chinese and Malay heroes
are so well-groomed even though they may
not be as good-looking. This tells the lack
of international standards. The title of
Vijay's next movie Vettaikkaran suggests
another typical commercial potboiler, with
no promise of difference that he promises
in every other movie before its release
3. Personality - Being
a celebrity, one must be paparazzi friendly.
Vijay fails in this aspect. He likes to
show himself off as a reserved and quiet
personality, which I think should change.
Close and friendly interactions with the
media are tools to career success and support.
The recent video of Vijay blowing his top
at a cleaner during a press meet might have
sparked some curiosity about his true character
- whether he is the type that can accept
defeat or not. The incident had occurred
because he was being questioned about the
flop of Villu. And it amazes me that he,
being a big star, could not see this coming
because even if not for the story, so many
technical aspects of Villu were illogical.
The stunt sequences were just beyond belief.
Especially one sequence where the speedboat
goes underwater. Even three-year old kids
wouldn't believe such a phenomenon.
Overall, there is a lot of things that Ilayathalapathy
needs to correct about himself and his selection
of films. If he is going to continue with
the flow of movies with dappanguthu songs,
nonsensical fight sequences, punch dialogues,
disgusting kuppathu lungi dances that supposedly
"SATISFY" his fans, he might not
go very far. This article is written solely
as my opinion and is not intended at hurting
Ilayathalapathy Vijay or his die-hard fans.
Nevertheless, I believe that being a celebrity,
one should learn to accept criticisms as
much as compliments and improve. Internationalism
is the need of the hour for Vijay, and it
should just not stop with his song and movie
scenes that are taken overseas.
Regards,
Endrendrum Vijay's Fan,
Kubaren
kub1990@yahoo.com.sg
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