More films like The Kerala Story need to come to light: Vijay Krishna

The Kerala Story has been the current hot topic of conversation, and Vijay Krishna, who plays one of the antagonists, is ecstatic about the response from the audience. As a theatre artist, Vijay started his film career with Mansore’s Act 1978 and has also appeared in the Kannada web series Kyabre, and Avrodh. Despite having numerous offers to play various characters, Vijay prefers to star in realistic films. “I have worked as a theatre artist for over 15 years. At this moment, I prefer doing realistic films, and it feels amazing to be part of a project like The Kerala Story,” says Vijay.

While the film was critically panned, and faced bans in multiple states, Vijay believes that the film owes its success to the audience’s reception. “If the film is good, it will be discussed, and there will be a positive word of mouth. So I feel it has really so much to do with the viewers,” Vijay says. Recalling a recent experience where he watched The Kerala Story with his partner in Mumbai, Vijay says, “I was wearing a mask so that people don’t recognise me. My partner at one point couldn’t even touch me because I play a strange character. She couldn’t look at me at first, and I completely understood. After some time, I saw her holding hands with another lady, sitting next to us, and weeping. That is the impact the film is creating. Also, I am receiving deep-rooted hatred from sections of the audience after seeing the film. I see it as a testament to my performance. I am happy to get such comments,” he says.

According to Vijay, the human interest story of The Kerala Story has captivated the audience. “It is about the abuse that women are going through, and some of the men are probably putting them through. I don’t believe it is about particular religions. It is about these women and their horrifying experiences. More of these kinds of stories need to come to light. I understand that these films will be part of controversies, but that’s part of the industry,” he says.

Vijay continues to choose characters that are completely different from each other. “I want to be part of varied roles as much as I can, and in different industries. Basically, I follow work and am looking to be part of Telugu and Tamil films. Right now, I have another project in Kannada and am waiting for the production house to officially announce it,” he concludes.