Sometime before the release of Chithha, Siddharth said that the film’s release would be the before and after phase for him as an actor. It became indeed true, given how Chithha became one of the much-talked-about films in last year’s Tamil cinema. Siddharth, who was also seen in Indian 2, is now gearing up for the release of romantic drama Miss You.

Has the post-Chithha phase been a reinvention for him? “I don’t think it as a reinvention. An actor is only as good as the films people create for them and imagine them. I can only choose from the films that come to me and I think what Chithha has done, raised the bar of films that I am now receiving. So, it is much more challenging to pick a film because I have more good films to choose from. That is the only difference, but that apart, the process is the same, I am the same person for the last 20 years and I intend to be the same, both physically and otherwise for the next 20 years,” says Siddharth who is grateful for the opportunity he gave himself with Chithha.

Siddharth Interview: My re-launch had to come from me

“I waited and waited, and my re-launch had to come from me (Chithha) and I am super grateful that the audience made it a hit because they get all the credit,” says Siddharth while talking about how much the film was not a trend film, but against what was being made in cinema.

“When the audience made it a hit, it gave me confidence that we are thinking right. I give them the credit for the next five years of my life because it raised the bar in the way I am being seen, what writers bring to me, and imagine me doing a lot more than they were before,” a confident Siddharth says about how the market is now content based.

Returning to home ground

With Miss You being a romantic drama, it feels like Siddharth is back to his home ground and what he was initially known for, the love stories. Is that what it is?

“I shifted industries in 2012 and took a break from Telugu cinema which lasted for about eight years. At that time, I only did Tamil films and started my production company. All the films that happened during that time were to re-start my career in Tamil again,” he says. Talking about how Miss You will see Siddharth in a romantic drama, after films like Bommarillu, Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi, and Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana, the actor says, “I was rejecting love stories for 10 years. I got bored and I left Telugu cinema because I was not allowed to do outside that genre. I saw myself getting stuck in that genre for the next 20 years and hence left. In the last 10 years, I have not done a simple love story here. Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi was my last one in Tamil.”

The reason he agreed to do Miss You is that he was looking for something light after Chithha’s release. “It took two years of my life, but then I wanted to do a happy film, something breezy. I have been saying no to love stories because it is difficult to write original ones. But when I heard the line about a boy proposing to a girl he could not stand, that really interested me. So, I told director Rajasekhar that we could do a film that both of us have not seen, so there are no tropes or conveniences. We wanted to make a sensitive, colourful, happy, decent, and musical film.”

Siddharth acknowledges that he is coming back to a genre that he knows pretty well, which also increases the pressure because he knows when it works well and not. The excited actor also says that the Miss You team is not following a trend, noting how this genre has been underexplored in the past years. “There are many reasons like people wanting to do bigger budget pan-Indian films, multiple markets. But I just want to do a Tamil film, and utmost it might go to a Telugu audience. The effort to make a good film is still the same, but I have tried to create a romantic alter ego different from my chocolate boy look 15 years ago.”

“It is a negative time period in world”

The actor also says that as we are going through dark times, it feels nice to bring a breath of fresh air and a film like Miss You which is soothing to watch. “I always believe that if you have a great female character, half the battle is won. So, we have won that part and people should just fall in love with Vasu and Subbu (characters) and want them to get together. I am confident that Miss You is a sweet and positive film, work across generations. I hope we are not cynical that we don’t find love in love.”

When asked what is the best-written female character he has seen in recent times, Siddharth says that coming from the school of Mani Ratnam, and adds, “He is one of the greatest writers of female characters in Indian cinema. I would not be able to make Chithha if I did not come from that school. Working in Kannathil Muthamittal in which I worked as assistant director, which is a female energy film, helped me understand. I don’t understand the word female-centric, so I won’t use it. But for me, Nimisha’s Shakti in Chithha for which we took time to write, is one of my favourite characters in my career. The climax, pre-climax is all hers. She has the best lines and Nimisha is an incredible actor. Also, Aditi Rao Hydari was great as Bibbojaan in Heeramandi (smiles).”

Siddharth also says that he is happy to be part of a love story, during times when films are made with male gaze and violence. “It is difficult to have endearing and enduring female characters, so I don’t think it is the best of times for female character depiction. Having said that I am happy with what we have done with Subbu in this film. She is well-represented and not a cliché. She is unpredictable,” he adds.

What makes a good script for Siddharth?

First and foremost, Siddharth says he looks for three things in a project. One is that he would want to watch it in theatres with the audience. Two, feel that he will be able to justify the role and lastly, learn something new. “When I look at Miss You, I want to watch a sweet film in theatres, secondly, I know I am good at this genre, and third, I am learning something when I am trying to make a love story for a generation not born when I was making love stories. It helps me connect and understand if I am good at observing life in the last 20 years or if I am sitting in an ivory castle.”

Being an actor in today’s times also comes with immense scrutiny. But Siddharth says that while scrutiny was always there, every voice is just being amplified now. He adds, “Now we are in a place, where the more negative a voice speaks, the more amplified it is, which is why trolling has become a thing. Even though trolling has been for some time, it is only now, we are highlighting it.” Siddharth says he sees himself more as an actor than a star and makes sure his films are commercially viable for producers. “I don’t want to be rewarded for making bad films. If you become a star, you get rewarded for making crap films and I am not that person.”

Siddharth says it is a great time to be him, given the range of films he has been getting. “I will consider Miss You, Test, and Siddharth 40 as very important films. Because they are films that I signed and started when I gave this boost to Chithha. When you see these films, they will be different. In fact, I have next three projects after this as well, a big one that I was shooting for in Rajasthan in another language. The next two years will be incredible and starting on a confident front foot!” Siddharth signs off.

Miss You will be released in theatres on November 29.

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