A day after actor-filmmaker Arjun Sarja accused him of unprofessionalism, actor Vishwak Sen told his side of the story at the press meet of a film titled Raja Yogam on Sunday evening in Hyderabad.
"I am someone who has always worked in an environment that encouraged collaborative efforts. For the first time ever, I wanted to do a film out of sheer respect for a senior like Arjun. I met him three to four times for story discussions and liked the story in the fourth meeting. The journey was progressing smoothly and I happened to receive the script of the first half just a week before the shoot of the film. I thought this would be another film in which we will all be working together as team. Interference and involvement are two different things. Arjun sit had stated that he even takes the inputs of office boys in to consideration, but my attempts to offer suggestions in the script always went in vain," Vishwak said, adding that Arjun always muted him, asking him to forget about the changes and blindly trust him.
He added, "It felt like I was tighlty bounded. My concerns about the script were never heard or acknowledged. And even a day before the shooting of the film, I convinced myself to do the film because I had committed to it. I even woke at 4 am to go the shoot on the first day and for the first time ever, I was scared of going to a film set. It had never happened before. Every time I go to a film set with the intention of nailing a performance and impressing the filmmaker. I never asked Arjun sir to stall the shoot of the film. I only asked him to postpone the shoot for a day so we can discuss a few things and sort them out before proceeding. There was no response from his side even though my manager and I kept relentlessly trying to set up a meeting. However, all of sudden, we were given details of a bank acocunt and were told by his manager to return the advance amount."
Vishwak acknowledged that there was a mistake on his side too. "Yes, it was wrong on my part to cancel shooting for a day but what would have been a bigger mistake is hesitantly participating in the shoot for four days and then asking for a two-break to sort the differences. They would have asked me why I didn't share my concerns before the shoot had commenced."
Vishwak added, "I have always treated people with respect and believe in solving problems within the four walls. Arjun sir had stated that he and his team felt sad because of what I have done. My family and well-wishers are also sad for me. Whom should I share my problems with? I could have responded to his accusations yesterday but I didn't want to. Everyone around me, even those who know me, is debating about me and my work ethics. What do they know about me and how I work? I wanted to avoid discussions on the film set. The day I make a mistake on the film set is the day I''ll quit acting. I didn't even know that I insulted him. I am so sorry if he felt insulted by actions. I wish him and his film the best."
Vishwak was recently seen in Ori Devuda and has Das Ka Dhamki, which he is also directing coming up.
