World Famous Lover is due in cinemas on February 14.
Actor Vijay Deverakonda is going through a period of transition as an actor and person. He says that stories from the romantic genre, which laid the strong foundation for his career, doesn’t excite him anymore. Now, the star seems to prefer action over romance, and he says World Famous Lover would be his last love story for a while.
Excerpts from Deverakonda’s interaction with the media in Hyderabad:
You have said that World Famous Lover will be your last love story. Why do you say that?
I am changing as a person. For example, I preferred very colourful clothes earlier. Now, I feel like wearing muted colours. I don’t know about others, but I have drastic shifts in my phases. Similarly, right now, love stories don’t excite me. World Famous Lover will be my last love story, at least for a while. Within two or three months, you will see my new phase as an actor and as a person. I know what I kind of movies I am going to do in the next two years.
Are you concerned that every new movie you do is compared with Arjun Reddy?
Even if I grow a beard for an action film or a science-fiction movie, people will still compare it to Arjun Reddy. It is unavoidable for me. Arjun Reddy is a kind of film that will be remembered for generations. So, I am not concerned about people comparing my new films with it. We can show the variations in love stories as well. Geetha Govindam and Arjun Reddy are love stories that are very different from each other. In World Famous Lover (WFL), you will see three different love stories, and one of them shares a similarity with Arjun Reddy. But, overall, it has a unique format. I have never seen this kind of film before.
KS Rama Rao said that you were more involved in World Famous Lover than Kranthi Madhav.
It’s not like that. It is my responsibility. I haven’t promoted World Famous Lover aggressively because I was shooting in Mumbai. As an actor, I should promote my movies. For instance, we did musical concerts for Dear Comrade because I loved the songs and I wanted to promote across south India. For World Famous Lover, I did very minimal promotions because I wanted to see what happens with minimal promotions. World Famous Lover is the brainchild of Kranthi Madhav, and it completely belongs to him. And, whatever credit this film gets beyond acting should go to Kranthi Madhav and our cameraman Jaya Krishna Gummadi.
What was the most challenging part of shooting for this movie?
World Famous Lover was one of the hardest films that I have done so far. Mentally and physically, it took a huge toll on me. I had to show physical variations, and I shot it in different makeups across multiple locations around the world for a long duration.
Listen to World Famous Lover actor Vijay Deverakonda interaction with journalists in Hyderabad
Did your opinion about love change between Pelli Choopulu and World Famous Lover?
Earlier, I used to believe that the concept of love is nonsensical. I went through several phases when it came to love. Now I am in the phase where I believe in love. I think it’s beautiful and we all need love in our lives. Love is the strongest and most important feeling for us. We all should have people in our lives who love us.
What is the rationale behind the title World Famous Lover?
You will understand better why we picked this title when you watch the movie.
Did you prepare for Seenayya character in World Famous Lover?
I didn’t. I figured it out on sets. But, my first shot for this character took almost half-a-day because I couldn’t get him. While reading the script itself, you get an idea about a character. But, it took some time to understand his personality and body language. I copied a few of my dad’s mannerisms to play that character.
Are you happy with the box office result of Dear Comrade?
The film was number 1 in four countries. It was a rage in Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and North India. It was a story that I wanted to tell. Dear Comrade is a film that I am very proud of.
Tell us about your film with Puri Jagannadh.
Fighter will be my debut in Hindi, and we are simultaneously shooting it in Telugu. This film is physically very demanding. I felt this kind of excitement for a movie after a long time.