Oh My Dog- A film by the families and for the families

The upcoming Tamil film Oh My Dog stars actors of three generations from the same family. Starring veteran actor Vijaykumar, his son and actor Arun Vijay and Arun's son Arnav Vijay, the film apparently involves a family who trains a blind Husky puppy for a dog competition. The press meet saw the Vijaykumar family in attendance along with the rest of the film's cast, crew, veteran actor Sivakumar and Snow, the Husky who plays Simba the dog in the film.

Oh My Dog is helmed by director Sarov Shanmugam who thanked the cast and crew of the project. "It was Suriya sir who recommended Arnav Vijay," said Sarov and described how Suriya liked the story and showed him photos of Arun Vijay's son, suggesting him for the role. "I am glad that Arun Vijay sir and Vijaykumar sir are also a part of this film. Oh My Dog has come out so well that I am looking forward to Arnav getting an award as the Best Child Artist for this year." The film is shot by cinematographer S Gopinath, known for films like Ghilli, Dhool and Vettaikaaran. "It's a blessing to shoot three generations of actors in the same film," said the cameraman.

Interestingly, the film also has action sequences that are choreographed by Stunt Silva. Speaking about the film, he said, "There's a fight scene involving the kids and it was a nice experience to work with them. Arun Vijay sir played a major role in changing my fight pattern and I am happy to have worked with his family in this film." Sharing a similar emotion, the film's music composer Nivas K Prasanna said, "Oh My Dog is a new beginning to me. It changed the way my creative process works."

Arun Vijay's son Arnav, who is making his debut with this film said, "Acting with thatha and appa on my debut film was such a great experience. I have to thank Suriya uncle and Jyotika aunty for this film." The film's producers Suriya and Jyotika surprised those present at the event by appearing via a video byte, along with their four-legged family members Waffle and Oreo, to wish the team of Oh My Dog. 2D Entertainment's Rajsekar Pandian said, "The motive of Oh My Dog is to be a story on the lines of a Disney film that kids will love. More than 100 dogs have been a part of this film." He also said that director Sarov had worked on this script for more than five years.

Veteran actors Sivakumar and Vijaykumar then took over the stage and shared stories of how their friendship began in the early 60s. Sivakumar said, "Vijaykumar might be younger than me by 4 years but he started working in films before me." Speaking about Oh My Dog, he went on to say, "I have watched the film and it has come out really well", before congratulating the director for helming a film with dogs and children. Vijaykumar, who plays Arun's father and Arnav's grandfather in the film, said, "We shot at Ooty for more than 50 days. I play a strict middle-class grandfather. It was a good experience to work with them all." He also joked about what he overheard Arnav saying during the film's shoot. "I came back from shooting a shot to watch Arnav telling someone how he plays the lead in the film and me and his father are playing 'side roles'. I wish Arnav becomes a star in the industry."

Sivakumar, who once again took over the mic, shared the moving story of how Suriya has come a long way to become the actor and producer he is. "Suriya was someone who used to not talk more than four words a day. Director Vasanth, when he saw Suriya the first time, told me that was the kind of person he was looking for. After the first show of Nerrukku Ner, Suriya told me how badly he has done in a few scenes. For that boy to come all the way to do a film like Jai Bhim wasn't easy. I'm glad that Jai Bhim has made a lot of positive changes to the Irular community," said Sivakumar.

Arun Vijay, who spoke last, said, "I thank Suriya sir and Jyotika ma'am for making Oh My Dog Arnav's first film. The role Arnav plays in the film is an extension of his actual character. It was a wonderful experience to work with all the child actors. The film was supposed to release in December last year but because of the delay in permissions in regards to the use of animals, the release got delayed. It has become a blessing in disguise as it's now releasing during summer holidays."

Oh My Dog will stream on Amazon Prime Video from April 21.