Actor Arjun Sarja was recently in Hyderabad to promote his upcoming Tamil-Telugu film Blast Zone. Talking to the press about his Leo co-star and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay, the actor revealed how their conversation went. He also claimed that the actor-politician had seen all the memes based on his 1999 hit film Mudhalvan. (Also Read: Tamil Nadu CM Vijay permits theatres to run 5 shows per day for new films in 1st week; fans thrilled for Jana Nayagan)
Arjun Sarja reveals what Vijay felt when he saw the CM seat
Shankar, the director of Mudhalvan, originally pitched the script to Vijay before the iconic role went to Arjun. The actor-politician was only in his early 20s at the time and had turned down the offer. The film became a massive hit when it was released in 1999, and after Vijay became the TN CM, numerous memes emerged about how, despite missing out on the role, he became the ‘real life Mudhalvan’.
When asked about it at the event, Arjun smiled and said, “I met him recently when he became the CM. He told me he saw memes. When he first saw the CM seat, he said he remembered my Oke Okkadu/Mudhalvan movie. And I’m very proud that someone from the film industry, an actor, someone we worked with, is a chief minister today. It’s such a big achievement to become the chief minister for the first time he contested.”
Arjun and Vijay played brothers in Lokesh Kanagaraj’s 2023 hit Leo. After meeting Vijay last week, Arjun posted pictures and wrote on Instagram, “With our dearest Mudhalvan, C. Joseph Vijay Avl. Wishing him strength, good health and guidance as he continues to shoulder great responsibility with grace.”
Denies he has plans of entering politics
Arjun, who played a journalist turned chief minister for only a day in Mudhalvan, was also asked if he had plans on entering politics. He joked, “I don’t think you want me to be happy.” However, he explained further, adding, “To do something like that, you need to have something on the inside. I don’t have that. If you just want to do good, you can do it otherwise too. Politics is a whole different ball game now. You need money, but I don’t have that much.”
When it was pointed out that Vijay became the CM of TN without spending money, he agreed, candidly adding, “Aina antha peru ledu kada naku ippudu. (I no longer have the kind of fame he does now).” Mudhalvan tells the story of a reporter who accepts a challenge from a chief minister to rule the state for a day. He rapidly goes about weeding out corruption and faces the consequences. The film was also reportedly offered to Rajinikanth before it went to Vijay and eventually to Arjun.