Though Vijay Antony started out as a sound engineer, composer, singer and lyricist, he has always wanted to be an actor. “Saithan is my fifth film as an actor, and will be released in a couple of weeks. The adulation, fame and stardom came to me when I didn’t expect. All I want is to give hits consistently,” he says.
He was always interested in acting but never thought it would materialise so soon. Vijay adds. “Many told me that it wasn’t a right decision, but I didn’t take them seriously. I knew what I wanted. There are different levels of being a hero in Tamil cinema. Naan (2012) put me on a different plane. So, I thought I need to keep proving myself further.”
He then went on to do Salim (2014) and India Pakistan (2015). “They were out of my comfort zone. Pichaikkaran did extremely well in both Tamil and Telugu. That’s altogether a different
genre. I believe in reinventing myself as an actor with every film,” he tells CE.
Vijay says the trick lies in choosing good storytellers who come up with different scripts. “I was lucky to work under directors who shaped my carrer. They have laid a strong foundation for me to climb the ladder of success in a short span,” he grins.
But each film has been a huge challenge for this multi-tasker. “The whole journey has been tough. Every film release is like writing an exam. Cinema has taught me to take things in its stride. It made me look at things positively because I realised success and failure are part of the package and one should not get disheartened by the failures,” he says. “I know what the audience wants. I do only one or two films a year, as I am concerned about the quality of my roles.”
Vijay says he’s not elated with the ‘peppy’ tag. “People call me a successful music director, but I know I am not. The songs became a hit, but I haven’t worked with big banners or superstars. I wanted to do something that will change my perspective towards life,” he says and adds that’s when he got into acting. “So far, it’s working in my favour. You should try out everything you wish to in life.”
Vijay plays a dual character in Saithan but he isn’t revelaing much, except to say: “One is an IT professional, and the other...well, it’s not a ghost,” he laughs.
As far as his acting stint is concerned, he’s attempting something different in every film. For his other film, Yemen, he is following a diet to gain weight and is hitting the gym. “In Yemen, I play a character who is unpredictable. It’s an action-based political thriller. Jeeva Sankar, who helmed Naan, will be directing this film. My role has negative shades too. After all, everybody has demons in them, don’t they?” he explains.
After these projects, he will start working on Hitler and Thirudan. But he has not quit music altogether. “If the need arises for me to score music, I will certainly do it. I want to keep myself busy,”
he smiles.