Vijay has his plate full

Vijay Deverakonda is on a roll. Having committed to star in the projects of Rahul Sankrityan and Nandini Reddy up next, the overnight sensation, awaiting the release of ‘Dwaraka’ presently, believes he could not have asked for more.

What’s more interesting are the roles that he’s been offered with. In Rahul’s untitled project he would be seen as a cabbie, which requires him to prep for a week, while in Nandini’s film, a comedy set in the film industry; he will be playing the manager of a T-town heavy hitter who falls in love with the manager of another star.

That’s not all on his plate. He is committed to star in ‘#Pellichoopulu’ producer Raj Kandukuri’s next to be directed by short filmmaker Vivek Athreya. It will roll once he is through with Nandini’s film. “In one of the portions of the film, I’d be playing an intermediate student. It’s an intelligent screenplay and is a crime comedy. Vivek has been in touch with me since ‘Yevade Subramanyam’,” he points out.

There’s also another project with another new guy Bharat K. “I wanted to start it as soon as possible but as Geetha Arts and UV Creations were waiting (Rahul’s film), I couldn’t start it straightaway. I wish I had a twin,” he smiles, adding, “We want to set it up nicely and there are a good number of production houses willing to bankroll it. Bharat is busy with the dialogues version as of now.”

He admits that he never expected to be this busy. “I was hoping to be busy one day but not this early. I didn’t have the time to mentally prepare to meet the rush. It’s too much to handle.” But he is keen on completing one film before he begins a new one. “If I have my way, I’d shoot for one project at a time.”

While ‘Dwaraka’s release date is uncertain still, Vijay is ready to present ‘Arjun Reddy’ to the audience early next year. Supremely confident about the film’s BO prospects in which senior actress Kanchana, 77, who was last seen in the Telugu film ‘Shri Datta Darshanam’ is playing his grandma, he says, “It would be something new to Telugu people. It might release in February or March next year.”

But didn’t he ever felt that it was too early for him to get into some butt-kicking mode? “It is an not an action film per se as it has only two action blocks, which are shot very realistically. It’s a very volatile part that I play.”

Admitting that his dad, who was into directing TV soaps sometime ago, is happy with his progress, he maintains that Deverakonda senior has no plans of directing the junior. “He knows that I won’t let him on the sets as I can’t emote when he’s around. So I’m completely ruling out being directed by him,” Vijay laughs, signing off.