Vijay Deverakonda hasn’t watched Kingdom yet. He also doesn’t remember the last time celebrating a film’s success, he says. “It’s often more a feeling of being relieved than jubilation. That’s been the case since my early 3-4 films,” he notes, adding, “After you have earned the love, you feel a responsibility. There are huge budgets, people are waitin for your film. For Kingdom, It was only after hearing the word-of-mouth from USA screenings that we finally went to sleep.”
Even as his latest film enjoys great footfalls on the weekends, Vijay Deverakonda shows no hesitance in discussing the film’s plot points which received criticism. The actor admits that Kingdom deals with many layers at once, adding, “It’s difficult to capture it all in 3 hours.” The makers also received some flak for removing the much-loved ‘Hridayam Lopala’ song. Vijay candidly replies with no qualms, “If we had kept it, you would have said, ‘that song feels out of place, why keep it?' Now that we removed it, you are questioning that too! Honestly, if we hadn't released that song for promotions, you would feel nothing amiss in the narrative.”
And then the conversation arrives to the boat-pulling sequence, that has been likened by many fans to the iconic railway station moment in Nani-starrer Jersey. When asked about the experience of shooting the boat scene, Vijay retorts with a deadpan expression, “I just remember the mad, scorching heat of May. My feet were burning, and we would sprint back to the tents after every shot. People were passing out.” On a serious note, the actors sees it as a compliment. “We never thought of it as our Jersey moment. It’s only a compliment to how strong that Jersey scene was. Maybe Gowtam making this film became a reason for the connect,” he adds.
Vijay mentions that he was specific about having a bulky look for the Sri Lanka portions in Kingdom. “We shot the cop portions in first schedule. 6 months later, by the time we went back on floors, I was just training in the mean time. I wanted a more masculine look for Soori when he goes to Sri Lanka.” Talking about his other prep for the film, Vijay mentions that he really got immersed into watching shows and movies set against period backdrops at one point. He recalls, “I started watching Vikings after Gowtam’s first narration, to get an idea of how people spoke and walked in those times, what can be done for costumes etc. I would then discuss the same with Gowtam, but he has his own way of doing things.”
Vijay is full of praises for Gowtam Tinnamuri’s filmmaking style. He notes, “When we first met, he had an idea of two brothers in a gangster-cop universe. I love how he deals with emotions and family bonds. He is clear about his character arcs and shot compositions — he comes to sets with that clarity. Even in Jersey, his shots and use of music is very heroic. Even small moments there can give you that high.” Talking about one of the two major action set-pieces in the film, Vijay takes note of Gowtam’s smart writing choices. “The prison sequence comes for an important reason, and is written at an interesting point. It doesn’t end with hero-gets-all euphoria. Gowtam doesn’t write action for action’s sake. Kingdom is like an old-school, slow-burn action drama.”
Recalling how the phone has not stopped ringing since Thursday morning, Vijay Deverakonda reflects on his journey, and how he often feels overwhelmed by audience’s love. Vijay reflects candidly on not having any delusions about his profession. He explains, “Films are just a job. We are not saving this planet. Somehow, this job got created ages ago where we tell stories and people enjoy them. But internally, on one layer, it becomes so important for people. This means so much to so many, but those reactions really touch me.”
The conversation veers to Arjun Reddy, where the actor first tasted that sense of overwhelming love. He recalls, “When we were planning audio launch for it, Sandeep (Reddy Vanga) and I wondered if people would come. Later, when we saw thousands of students and their reaction to our film, we were totally taken aback.” Vijay recalls he was paid 5 lakhs for Arjun Reddy, which was a huge sum for him back then. He adds, “I hadn’t seen that kind of money at once. But seeing the love, I thought what can I do to give back to my fans — which is why I decided to auction my Best actor award. Giving away those 25 lakhs brought me so much joy. Till date, I feel happy thinking about it.”
This hunger for audience’s affection is also why Vijay shares why he hasn’t watched Kingdom yet. He explains, “I had watched a rough cut 15-20 days ago. I want to watch it in a theatre with my audience, but am not getting permission. Where’s the fun in watching it all alone in those small screening rooms?”