Actor, producer Sivabalaji, fresh after his Bigg Boss win is catching up with family and his lost time with kids over a few weeks. Involved with his production house work simultaneously, he’s getting used to not being in a locked house. Not a clear favourite to win Bigg Boss , many branded him ‘angry’, ‘arrogant’ within days of his presence in the show, it took time for spectators to understand he was merely being himself. The small-screen audience gradually warmed up to his presence that helped him garner votes from all quarters week after week.
Life post Bigg Boss too hasn’t been easy, he says. “When I went to Bigg Boss , I knew what I was, my identity and what part I play in society. What was more shocking was the love that people had for me. I didn’t change, but the immediate surroundings did. People started accepting me and owned me like one among their family.” He’d tried disconnecting from the house immediately after he returned home. It took him a week’s time to realise he couldn’t. “I couldn’t comprehend and wasn’t interested to listen to any question beyond Bigg Boss .”
He says television is an ocean, the impact depends upon the act you do there. “It’s upto you to choose what you want, the show in a real-onto-reel format let me do that. There are other reality shows that exist but you can spot that people act there.” Sivabalaji maintains that he didn’t learn anything new from Bigg Boss house and that he’s seen life otherwise too. “People fight, cry and blame during the show and we understand such emotions because, we’ve experienced it before.”
Most contestants in the show, Navdeep, Archana, Mumaith and Sameer have been his friends off-screen too. The show got him to know their true-to-life facets on an intimate level, and it didn’t change their equation though. “When you like a person, it’s in totality, including their strengths and flaws. You should receive them completely. Whenever I fought with someone in the show, it’s only pertaining to their reaction to a particular incident and not their character trait. Who are we to judge?”
His decision to enter Bigg Boss wasn’t to help his film career. “I felt I had to open up as a person. I was under severe social media criticism for posts where I’d discussed social issues and raised my voice.” He and his actor-wife Madhumitha chose to ignore the offer initially. “We felt the show was full of controversies. The channel felt I was a perfect-fit for a concept like that. When the organisers kept approaching me time and again, my friends and family wanted me to give it a shot. They told it’ll help me unravel the mystery surrounding me to the public.” His wife had advised him to keep a check on his temper which couldn’t happen, Sivabalaji laughs.
He’s okay with the criticism he faced but about his anger, he states that’s the way he reacts. “The Bigg Boss team told me that I was among the rare winners, who was true to their personality and yet won the show.”
A lot of television and movie offers are coming his way, but the actor plans to take it slow. “Many television channels are approaching me with innovative concepts. I want to do something that’s close to my heart. With every movie — Chandamama, Sambho Siva Sambho and Katamarayudu , regardless of its fortunes, I have taken a gap in between.” Yet, he realises that he’d lost some precious time in the process of being choosy and doing projects at his will. Meanwhile, he chose to set up a production house. He’s extremely kicked about the team behind his first production Snehamera Jeevitham . “With a production house, I can choose scripts and a team and grow accordingly. With other offers, I don’t have such a choice. I am happy with the fact that I am responsible for everything I do here.”
