Arjun Sarja to play the villain in Mahesh Babu-starrer 'Sarkaru Vaari Paata': Reports

Arjun's popularity in the Telugu states may help the film reach a wider audience

Noted actor Arjun Sarja may soon be roped in to play the antagonist in actor Mahesh Babu's latest film Sarkaru Vaari Paata, according to reports in the Telugu media. The 'Action King' enjoys a strong fan following in Tollywood and has garnered attention in recent years with his work in Naa Peru Surya and the Nithiin-starrer LIE.

His Tamil movies Irumbu Thirai and Mudhalvan too are reasonably popular in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The general feeling is that his association with Sarkaru Vaari Paata may help it reach a wider audience.

The film is being directed by Parasuram, who became the talk of the talk with his film Geetha Govindam, and will feature Mahesh Babu in a new avatar. Sarkaru Vaari Paata is likely to cater to the family audience and feature commercial elements. 'Prince' will reportedly be speaking in an unusual dialect in the biggie. It stars Keerthy Suresh as the leading lady and is her first film with the mass hero. The movie is slated to hit the screens next Sankranti.

Arjun, meanwhile, is going through a busy phase on the work front and will soon be seen in the National Award-winning Malayalam movie Marakkar, starring Mohanlal. It is touted to be a period drama and revolves around the journey of a Naval admiral. The cast includes Manju Warrier, Pranav Mohanlal, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty. Arjun also has the Ravi Teja-starrer Khiladi and the Tamil movie Friendship in his kitty.

Mahesh Babu, on the other hand, will soon be beginning work on his film with top filmmaker Trivikram Srinivas. He also has a film with S S Rajamouli, the director of popular flicks such as Yamadonga and Baahubali, in his kitty. It is likely to go on the floors once SSR wraps up his latest movie Rise Roar Revolt (RRR), starring Jr NTR and 'Mega Power Star' Ram Charan as the parallel leads.