Arun Vijay looks exhausted after a long day of promotions for his upcoming film,Retta Thala. “We’ve been doing back-to-back promotions. The film has come out really well,” he informs, as he sits down with us for a chat.
Before we delve into his Retta Thala, I ask him about a tweet that had gone viral post the release of Dhanush’s Idli Kadai, in which Arun featured as the antagonist. The tweet was a clip of the actor’s ‘Dilruba Dilruba’ song from his sophomore film Priyam (1996). Looking back at his 19-year-old self, Arun reminisces about the long journey he has had. “What strikes me is the fact that I no longer get such dance numbers, especially because my choice of scripts has evolved to suit what the audiences want. And they no longer want unnecessary songs that distract them,” he says with a grin. “In fact, I want to do a light-hearted film with songs and comedy next.”
He mentions how, over the years, many have offered him advice on how to build his career, but Arun has remained cognisant of what to take and avoid what not to take. “For instance, I have always done only one film at a time, which is why I have done very few films in all these years. Those who entered the industry after me have done more films than I. But believe that we should allow a project the time it demands and that quality is more important than quantity.” When he was much younger, however, he learnt his lessons the hard way. “I wasn’t mature enough to know how to choose scripts, and my father” — veteran actor Vijayakumar — “wanted me to learn it on my own. So I made all the decisions.” So if a producer thinks he looked good with a trimmed moustache, Arun used to follow it blindly. “Thankfully, the directors whom I worked with in the later stages made me realise those mistakes. Moreover, I also watch a lot of cinema; I observe how my counterparts select scripts, and what the audiences seem to like. My focus has been on analysing all of this and working on myself.”
Arun Vijay
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Over the last three decades, Arun has proved his merit as a serious actor thanks to many noteworthy turns in action films such as Thadam, Kuttram 23, Yennai Arindhaal, and Thadaiyara Thaakka. He stresses there is no set mantra behind his longevity. “The audiences know that Arun Vijay selects good scripts; I have created that confidence in them. So it’s important to keep doing that, and then it’s about how uniquely you cater to the audiences,” he adds, stating the ability to adapt to the changing times as key.
He seems quite excited about his upcoming film, Retta Thala, which, he adds, has an engaging screenplay packed with twists and turns at the right junctures. The film will see Arun play dual roles for the second time after Magizh Thirumeni’s 2019 thriller Thadam. “In most films, the dual roles would be of a pair of twins who share some similarities between them. When it comes to Retta Thala, these are two very different characters. So, cracking their respective looks, dialogue delivery and body language was quite tricky but exciting,” he says, adding that he had liked how the film’s director Kris Thirukumaran presented the characters to him. “One is Upendra, a man from Goa who carries a lot of swag in him. Even the way he speaks will be quite stylish, and he talks very fast. The other character is Kaali, a man from Pondicherry, who conceals a mysterious something within him. If Upendra talks very fast, Kaali seems like someone who is going through a lot,” explains Arun.
Arun Vijay in a still from ‘Retta Thala’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
While he has been a fan of double-action films of Kamal Haasan and MG Ramachandran, Arun, be it for Thadam or Retta Thala, chose not to look into how other actors have performed dual roles. “I wanted to do it without any influence. Only then can we produce something entirely new. I just go with what the director says, the characters’ backstories, where they come from and so on. I take these, and I extend upon them with my own imagination.”
Action is often trivialised as a shallow, pulp genre that doesn’t offer enough depth to its actors. So one wishes to ask Arun if he has ever been able to dig deeper into his character and if he has carried them beyond the scenes. “Of course. In Vanangaan, for instance, I couldn’t come out of that zone for about three months. Some things, like the experience of spending those days with specially-challenged children, remain etched in my mind. I can never forget how, even though they can’t speak, I felt what they were feeling.” The emotional beats in his film Yaanai, too, stayed with him, he adds. “In Retta Thala, what Kaali goes through is something I delved into. But because I was playing two characters, I couldn’t keep punching into one psyche; I had to keep an open mind.”
Arun Vijay
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Action, when it is propelled by the right emotion, thrills Arun. “Action should be sensible, and I get thrilled when I get to connect to the situation on paper while performing such action sequences. A punch gets its value only when the audiences anticipate it to be delivered at that precise moment.”
After Retta Thala, the actor has his long-delayed action film Borrder in the pipeline. “I have also narrowed down on a few scripts. My next might be a light-hearted script; I need such a detour. Moreover, I am in talks with my director, Magizh Thirumeni, for a film. Let’s see how it all pans out,” he signs off.
Retta Thala releases in theatres on December 25
Published – December 22, 2025 04:34 pm IST
