Last week’s Seyal was a quiet release, with the lone benefactor of the film likely being K Chander, better known as Chamak Chandra to his legion of fans in Telugu. The actor played the character of Dhandapani in the film.

The offer to star in the film came as a huge surprise for Chamak, who bears a striking resemblance to footballer-turned-actor IM Vijayan. He had his reservations over fitting in a Tamil film. “The team then helped me see that I could be really useful for the project, and made feel at home,” he says.

Chamak says he simply followed the director’s instructions. “Having a lot of new faces in the cast helped give the director a lot of freedom in sticking to his unconventional story,” he adds.

The actor rose to fame after being part of the comedy show Jabardast in a popular television channel. “Various social issues were addressed on the show, giving it an identity of its own. The popularity of the show helped me gain visibility. One thing led to another, and now, I am well established in the Telugu industry.”

Though he’s done around 25 films in Telugu, Chamak feels he has only lately gained a strong foothold in the industry. He has had two Telugu releases in recent times with big names such as Trivikram and Venkatesh, and after his turn in Seyal, is looking at doing more films in Tamil.