My directorial debut strikes a personal chord: Vijay

Actor Vijay Raghavendra’s ‘Kismath’ hit the screens today. Being his directorial debut, the actor is nervous and excited that his movie has finally come out. In a candid chat with Tini Sara Anien, he talks about the story, his role and how it struck a personal chord.

How did the film happen?

It all started right after I came back from Big Boss in 2013. I felt that I would get to play better roles as I had got closer to the audience but nothing like that happened. The whole idea of making a film came up then. Initially, I thought of just producing a film but making the director understand the story and how I wanted it made would have been a hard task. It was my family and friends, Naveen Krishna and Dileep Raj, who suggested to direct the film too.

Tell us a bit about the story.

The story is of Vijay, a young man whose life is going through several complications and faces more on a daily basis. The best part of the story is that he doesn’t give up. The way struggles are glorified in the story connects well with me. Kismath is what helps him out The story struck a personal chord with me, as I have gone through struggles too. My character is much like how I have looked at life, if there is a problem in life solve it or go with the flow.

Why is the movie titled ‘Kismath’?

Though being a Hindi word, the word has a connect to many in North Karnataka. I couldn’t have titled the film ‘Vidhi’, ‘Kala’ or ‘Samaya’; ‘Kismath’ was just right for the story.

How challenging was directing and acting together?

The first challenge was finding a good associate director, thankfully I found Devaraj Palan, who I had worked with earlier. The way he understands a director is perfect. I roped him in and a good team followed. My team helped me attain the right results. I was behind the camera so often that there were several moments on the sets when my cameraman would scold me and remind me that I was in the shot.

Did your directorial side affect the actor in you?

I am a director’s actor and do not do things on a whim or fancy. I always wait for instructions from the director as a film is his vision. So, working on this project was quite easy.

Any memorable moments from the sets?

It is not a memorable moment but is a memory I will never forget. We were shooting fight sequences and I had to push down Chikkana and beat him up. In one scene, I hit him right between the legs but he insisted on continuing the shoot. Even unintentionally, I have never hurt anyone and I felt terrible here.

Sangeetha Bhat plays the female lead in the film. How was it to act with her?

The team had seen her profile pictures and we knew that she was Anu (her role in the film). She is a bubbly person, always excited about life and always ready to learn. I call her ‘appata Kannada hudgi’ (a proper Kannadiga girl). This was exactly what we were looking for. She was excited about the film though her role is not very extensive.

In her #MeToo revelation, she said that she would leave the industry. Thoughts?

I hope that she comes back to the film industry. I believe that she will be able to deal with things more boldly now.