Sivakarthikeyan moves away from comedy to play his first serious role in Velaikkaran . He talks about his acting process, staying away from advertisements and the stalking in Remo. It feels like Sivakarthikeyan’s intense role in Mohan Raja’s Velaikkaran has spilled over to his real life persona as well. The usual ease with which he speaks during interviews is missing but his earnestness is still intact.
Excerpts from an interview:
Velaikkaran is the first film in which you’re playing a full-fledged serious character. After a string of hit comedies, was this a natural progression?
I wanted to make a film with Mohan Raja the moment I watched Thani Oruvan . But that wasn’t because I felt it was time to do a serious film. Usually, my characters become serious only towards the climax. Velaikkaran is different. It’s an emotional journey of Arivu and his struggles.
It is also the first time you’re working with a director who is not one of your regulars?
I like the importance Raja sir gives his characters. I told him that I wanted a film that is in his style and not alter a script for me. He then combined two stories into film and we took it from there.
Were you apprehensive about alienating your audience?
Not really. I come from a background in television so I had to start my career with comedy, because that’s how people knew me. Once I established myself, I knew I could fit into a film like the ones Mohan Raja makes. But my decision to work with him wasn’t to take advantage of the success of Thani Oruvan .
You said you’d do two films a year? But it has now come down to just one.
Both Remo and Velaikkaran are films that can’t be worked on parallelly because of the contrasting characters and their appearance. There are other factors too. Even last week, we had to cancel a schedule in Tenkasi for Ponram’s movie because it started raining. My films usually take 100 days to complete because we shoot all five songs and four fights, all of which takes at least five days each. But this will change from next year.
Because of the serious nature of your role in this film, did you have to make changes to your acting style? Did you have to make it more subtle?
I didn’t measure my performance that way. But the script did demand an intense portrayal. When I do comedy, I focus on the timing; the jokes have to make me laugh in my head. But serious roles are different. I need to draw from my own life experiences to deliver an intense performance. When you want to show pain in a scene without crying, there are several incidents from life that I can draw from.
Even before you became an actor, a lot of your comedy was based on mimicry. Do you notice some of those mannerisms creeping into your performances today?
It happens. Half the time, I only realise that I’m imitating someone when I watch the film in the theatre. But I don’t try to control it as long as it comes from within, naturally. Many say I resemble Rajini sir but I don’t want to change my style because it adds flair and charisma. If I try to alter it, then I will start becoming conscious and that will affect my confidence.
You seem to be very self-aware...
I feel I’m a good learner. I think if I continue on this path, I know I will become a good actor someday. But I wish this happens quickly. Velaikkaran has taught me so much because I was able to work with actors like Fahad Faasil, Prakash Raj and Nayanthara. Fahad is truly an international actor and he can play any role. As long as I work with such people, I will be able to improve.
Your assent to stardom has happened in the span of five years. Have you changed a lot in this period?
Yes I have. My thought process has changed and so has my approach to cinema. My confidence levels have improved and I don’t feel inferior anymore. Earlier, it was easy for others to make me feel small.
How so?
Anybody from the kind of background I come from would have felt like that. I’m from an ordinary family in Tiruchi. When you come to a city to a new field, everything’s overwhelming...the big buildings, the people, how they dress. But I realised that this feeling was tying me down to my comfort zone. I’ve tried to overcome these thoughts but they keep coming back.
You wanted to become a sidekick to stars. But somewhere you became a star yourself. Was there a defining moment that made you take your career seriously?
It was not one incident...there were many things that brought about this change in me. When people you consider close, try to stop you or come in the way, you need to break away, right? In cinema, it’s the audience that decides where you stand...no one person can control you. That’s when I took charge and it has made me stronger.
Has that come at the cost of your image or your innocence?
Professionally, you learn to treat people and things differently. But innocence is something that comes from how you’ve been brought up. That has remained intact.
Have you become careful of what you say now?
I was very conscious of what I was saying last year. I was disturbed so I started filtering what I used to say. But now I can speak from the heart. I’ve taken the effort to clear my mind and I feel free. When I had just started out in the industry, I could say anything funny and no one would get offended. But somewhere along the way, things changed and people weren’t seeing me the same way. But I’ve managed to remain the same because that’s the person the audiences have liked.
How have you managed that?
Even though my life has changed, the people around me haven’t. My friends are all the people who were with me before the fame and the money. They have the freedom to correct me when I’m wrong and my success is as much theirs as mine. If you choose the wrong friends, both your career and life will change.
Going back toRemo, a lot of people felt it glorified stalking?
Remo is a comedy film and that’s how it should be seen. There are hundreds of comedy scenes in older films that end with Vadivelu getting beaten up. But would you call that violence? The only thing women asked me after watching Remo was where I had bought those saris from. I feel the film was unfairly targeted. Having said that, I will always consider this angle when I choose scripts.
You recently said that you wont act in advertisements. Was it because ofVelaikkaran?
I had previously said no to an ad for a soft drink because I don’t consume it myself and I don't think it’s healthy. How can I advertise something I won’t give my own children. I had also refused to act in an ad for a fairness cream. But I decided to not endorse products after Velaikkaran because I can’t check the products I’m advertising and I can’t control their quality. So I thought I’ll stop it altogether.
Lastly, if we divide acting into categories, how would you rate yourself?
Romance? 6 out of 10
Comedy? 8 out of 10
Fight sequences? It has improved from two to five.
Dance? 6
And intense emotional scenes? That exam alone I will attend after the release of Velaikkaran.
