‘Tabu and I play very intense characters’

Tabu, whose last film in Telugu was Trivikram Srinivas’ Ala Vaikuntapuramlo in 2020, is back in Tollywood, this time with Puri Jagannadh, in Slumdog-33 Temple Road. She is co-starring with Vijay Sethupathi, who talks about the actress and the project, and shares behind-the-scenes titbits.

Making it clear that theirs is not a romantic pairing, Sethupathi says, “Tabu and I share a very unconventional relationship on screen. Our roles require us to be emotionally distant from one another. To maintain that aloofness, we hardly spoke to one another on set, beyond ‘Hi’ and ‘Bye.’”

Saying that he’s not allowed to reveal much about her part—“You have to see what she plays”— he however discloses that they both have very intense roles. “For both of us, intense characters are not unusual. But even so, this is something else.” He adds that watching Tabu shooting “was a huge privilege.”

Sharing another sidelight, he says, “She is so fluent in Telugu. Tabuji and Zarina Wahabji were constantly chatting on the set in Telugu.”

Vijay, who is working with Puri for the first time, is playing a blind beggar in the movie and has reportedly gone all out to get in character. Attention was paid to the clothes, mannerisms, even the hunger. Vijay went without food for days to authentically reflect what a beggar feels. “This is one of my most challenging roles,” says the stalwart actor.

Apparently, Puri had originally wanted to make the film with Vijay Devarakonda. But when Liger flopped, Devarakonda moved on. And another Vijay picked up the role, at a considerably discounted fee, keeping in mind the slump in the Telugu film industry and in the fortunes of the filmmaker, who has been coming up with a slew of flops.

Says Vijay, “I don’t judge any filmmaker for his past work. If I like a story, I will do it, if I don’t, I won’t. It doesn’t matter to me what the mood of a film is. A potboiler gets the same attention and focus from me as other types of films.”