Actors, more often than not, enjoy the many challenges that come with taking on a new character. It is this challenge that makes Arun Vijay say yes to a film. In Retta Thala, the challenge was to return to familiar terrain but in an unfamiliar environment, and Arun Vijay lapped it up with both hands. Unlike Thadam or Mafia: Chapter 1, Arun Vijay's dual roles of Malpe Upendra and Kaali aren't siblings. "In Thadam, the difference was subtle, since my characters were twins. But in Retta Thala, one character is loud, and in-your-face, while the other has a mystery surrounding his character. Expressing the contrast was quite the challenge, and that's what drew me to Retta Thala," explains Arun Vijay.
Retta Thala, which is releasing on Christmas, is directed by Kris Thirukumaran and is starkly different from his previous film, Bala's Vanangaan. "After Vanangaan, I wanted to do a completely different film. When I was listening to this story, I found it very thrilling and engaging. I felt it had the potential to give the audience a complete theatrical experience," says the actor, who reveals that the transition from Vanangaan to Retta Thala was anything but easy. "It took a while for me to come out of Vanangaan. When you go into the acting school of Bala sir, the characters you play are intense and hard-hitting. After essaying a character who only converses through sign language, I had to ask Thiru sir to stop me if Vanangaan's Koti ever came through in my performance. Thankfully, I was able to get into the rhythm of Retta Thala on Day 2 of shooting."
Delving deeper into how the filmmaker shot the dual roles of Arun Vijay, the actor says that the method added one more layer of challenge. "For the first half of a day, we would shoot one character, and I had to shift into the other character for the second half of the day," explains Arun Vijay, who urges that it was definitely a challenge, but one that made the transformation easier. Arun Vijay, who has been in the industry for over 30 years, says that he doesn't stay in character, but has developed a knack for being attuned to the tone of the film. "When I was working on Vanangaan, I used to maintain the intense nature of that character even at home. But they are used to it now," says Arun Vijay, who points out the levity and irony in certain peers not understanding his process. "Siddhi (Idnani) ignored the intensity and interacted with me with her high energy. Later, she would be offended that I wasn't paying attention," the actor points out in a lighter vein. "I am doing this because I want to justify the character a hundred percent. Maintaining the look and the mood of the character is easy for me when I am working on one project at a time," explains Arun Vijay.
Arun Vijay points out that the locations where they filmed Retta Thala helped his acting process. "This is a story that is set in Goa and Pondicherry. The director was also very specific about the colours and the architecture of the locations. So the film was shot at a lot of ruins and broken bridges, which reflects the characteristics of my roles," explains the actor, adding, "Even for filming the song, 'Kannamma', we shot at a place called Malacca, which had picturesque locales that elevated the director's vision."
Interestingly, 'Kannamma' showed the audience the dancer in Arun Vijay, a facet that was unexplored for a while. "Since I was mostly doing thrillers, my films were devoid of dance numbers," says Arun Vijay, who understands that many get distracted when films of this genre cut away to a song and dance. "But I am honestly satisfied that I did get a chance to shake a leg in Retta Thala."
Giving us a glimpse into his next project, he reveals that he is in talks with his Thadaiyara Thaaka (2012) and Thadam (2019) director Magizh Thirumeni for a new project. "Magizh is writing something, and I hope everything falls in place," signs off Arun Vijay.