Debutant actor Dhruv Vikram is making all the right moves before the release of his first film Varma, the Tamil remake of the Telugu Arjun Reddy. On Monday, it was announced that Dhruv donated his entire remuneration from Varma to the Kerala flood relief fund. While it can easily be discarded as a publicity gimmick after the young actor was recently involved in a road accident, his gesture sure has won many hearts. Dhruv met Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan with the producer of Varma, Mukesh R Mehta, and handed over the cheque.
Meanwhile, the shooting for Varma, directed by Bala, was wrapped up last week and on Sunday the makers unveiled the film’s teaser to coincide with Dhruv’s birthday. An event, graced by his father and Kollywood star Vikram, was organised in Chennai to mark the launch of the teaser, which clocked nearly 2 million views in a single day. At the event, Dhruv said that he had agreed to do the project because Bala was interested in directing it. He went on to add that had Bala not come forward to direct the remake, he wouldn’t have done the film.
“I was studying in the US when this offer came along. Honestly, I didn’t want to leave everything and come shoot for this project. I told Dad that I’d do this film only if Bala mama would direct it. I grew up watching films of my dad and Bala mama. It was Bala mama who gave my dad life in Sethu. It’s him again who gave me a new lease of life via Varma,” Dhruv said, adding that he was really thankful to Bala for placing his faith in him.
When it was Vikram’s turn to speak, he said that Dhruv couldn’t have gotten a better launch. “When I saw Arjun Reddy in a screening, I asked myself why not get Bala to direct the remake. I know he hasn’t done a remake but I was keen on having him on board. I conveyed my request to the producer. I knew nobody else can mould Dhruv and give him a dream launch like Bala.”
(Content provided by Digital Native)