WHO can forget the vicious Chhedi Singh from Dabbangg (2009) or the sociopath-rapist Pasupathi in Arundhati (2009)? Barely a couple of years after the release of these blockbusters, Sonu Sood has his hands full with three major films this year — the Rajinikanth starrer Rana, in which he plays the villain once again, Puri Jagannadh’s Boodha — where he plays a cop, and of course Dabanngg 2, the much-awaited sequel that was recently announced by Arbaaz Khan.
“My first Tamil film was Kallazhaghar with Vijaykanth.
I know Tamil konjam konjam,” he offers. “I know when somebody asks me if I have had my lunch – to which I reply, saaptaachu. I wouldn’t say that my Tamil is great, but I definitely prefer speaking my own dialogues and even dubbing them.” It is evident that Rana has Sonu Sood excited, and one of the reasons of course, is working with the Superstar himself. “I met Rajini sir in Mumbai for Rana, and when he praised me for my work in Dabbangg, I was elated,” he says. “Since the last time I shared screen space with him i n Chandramukhi as Oomayyan, I’ve been wanting to work with him again.” And did they converse in Tamil? “It was a mix of English and Hindi that we spoke,” he laughs.
The shooting for Rana will begin in May, reveals Sonu. “I also met KS Ravikumar and learnt what a great filmmaker he was, particularly when it came to commercial cinema,” he says and refrains from revealing much about the plot of the film, as he is “under a contract”.
With Boodha, it is the first time that Sonu is working with Amitabh Bachchan.
“I’ve always shared a special bond with the Bachchans. I’ve worked with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Jodha Akbar (2008) and Abhishek Bachchan in Yuva (2004). Though shooting has already begun, I’m yet to shoot the scenes with Bachchan Sr.” The actor has proved his talent with notorious, negative characters but says he would rather experiment with his roles. “In Boodha. I play a cop — an ACP, who is very strict with his duties. It’s an action flick and I even have a love track in it with Sonal Chauhan,” he explains.
As for Dabangg 2, the actor says that the script is still under way.