For 25 months, popular spoof-star Jeeva has been dying to tell the world that his wildest dream has come true, finally: not only has he worked in Kochadaiiyaan along with Rajinikanth, but he has appeared as the actor in the film! “When someone manages to take a picture with the Superstar, they tell the entire world about it. But, I haven’t been able to tell anyone that I have acted as the Superstar in a few scenes in the film,” laughs Jeeva, who is well-known for his work in the spoof-show, Lollu Sabha on Star Vijay.
Having made his career by imitating Rajinikant’s gimmicks, Jeeva was approached to act in the film to reduce the workload on Rajinikanth, who was still recovering from ill health. “I worked for a total of 10 days in scenes that the director felt could have caused him discomfort. My job was tough, for I had to satisfy a director who has lived with the actor all her life and knows each and every movement of his. But I am happy to have delivered,” he says.
While almost all the actors in the film, including Rajini, admitted that getting into the character and performing without the set was a bit difficult, Jeeva felt the pressure twice over. “Not only did I have to perform by understanding the context of the scenes, I had to do it exactly the way the Superstar would have done it. That wasn’t easy,” he says.
Is he miffed that his contribution was not talked about at all? “Not at all. I was credited as the ‘dupe’ for the Superstar and I am more than happy. It has been my dream to appear in the same shot as Rajinikanth, but I got more than what I asked for,” he says.
Currently, Jeeva is starring in the sequel of actor-director Bhagyaraj’s hit Mundhanai Mudichu , which is being written and directed by Sriram Padmanabhan. “The film starts off from where it was left in Mundhanai Mudichu . I play the couple’s kid,” he says about the film, that’s likely to release later this year.
