With the uncertainty lifted over the release of director Shankar’s I , starring Vikram, the focus has now shifted to the film, which is expected to get a massive countrywide release this Pongal.
Vikram has spent nearly three years working on this film, which will see him donning four different looks: a bodybuilder, beast, model and a hunchback. Coming on the heels of a string of low-key films, the actor seems to be betting high on I .
Vikram is confident the film will finally break the language barrier and be talked about throughout the country. “This is a film which would be appreciated by pan-Indian audience. I could sense it even when I was doing the film,” he said, talking to mediapersons at a city hotel on Monday.
Speaking of his second collaboration with filmmaker Shankar, he said, “ Anniyan was a fairly uncomplicated, linear film, while I is not. Shankar can make a film completely outside what we think is his comfort zone. Working with him for the second time, I learned that his yearning for perfection hasn’t waned. It is not about how much money he is given to make a film. It is about what a film-maker can do. It is not about thinking of 200 elephants instead of 20. It is about thinking out of the box.”
Vikram was unwilling to say too much on what the film is about, except that he plays the role of a bodybuilder and the film is about what happens to him. “The plot is the hero of the film.” He revealed how difficult it was to prepare himself for each of his roles. “I had to follow a tough regimen to transform myself into all of these roles,” he said.
He spoke about a specific scene in which he had to strike bodybuilding poses. “Posing is a tough art. Fifteen minutes of posing onstage is tough and drains all energy. Since it was for a scene, it had to be done again and again. I ate small quantities of chicken and rice, drank thick black coffee. I pulled every muscle in my body,” he said.
For one of his other roles, that of a model, he was required to become slim and look dashing. “I had to lose all my fat, which meant that I had to work out regularly as I could easily put on fat around my waist. At the same time, I also had to look fresh and good,” he said.
He reduced his weight to 56 kg, losing fat drastically, and had to put on prosthetic make-up for hours together. “Five hours for the beast character. We shot for the entire day. I have shot for 17 hours. During the course of the filming, I developed severe rashes, prompting even actor Santhanam to mistake it for make-up,” he added.
Did he ever feel he was needlessly pushing himself too hard? “Commercial cinema has changed today. Commercial films also require a good dose of realism. I is a step in that direction,” Vikram said.
