Kollywood Baddies scoring big in Tollywood
Years ago, the Telugu film industry used to seek villains from Bollywood to play bad guys in their films. However the trend has changed as most films in Tollywood now opt for actors from Tamil Nadu to play the role of the main antagonist. Telugu films like Bruce Lee, Srimanthudu, Shankarabharanam all have villains from down south.
How it started
The trend setter was Sampath who was introduced in the Telugu film industry in 2011 through the film Panjaa. Two yea
rs later he made his mark again in Dammu but it was not until his brilliant show in Mirchi that he became the star he is today. In 2015, Sampath had as many as five releases. This year as well, his Soggade Chinni Nayana and Jai Balayya (Nani’s upcoming film) are expected to score big in the box office. Sampath is now can speak Telugu fluently and dubs for most of his roles himself. He seems to have been enjoying his time in Tollywood and stated that even though his entry to Andhra‘s film industry was only five years ago, the warmth and response he got there has been tremendous. He also mentioned that over time, roles of villains are gaining new dimensions and there is much variation in their roles now. He also added that the villain can be defeated in multiple ways in today’s films and talks of films where he is beaten by the hero, runs away and is simply killed.
Other actors like Bobby Simha, Aadi, Arvind Swami etc are all set to play villains in various upcoming films like Sarainodu and Sundeep Kishan or ram Charan’s next film. Arun Vijay also turned heads with his performance in Bruce Lee.
What makes them tick?
So what is it that makes these actors from Tamil Nadu such favorites with Telugu directors? Looks are a factor for sure. As many of these Tamil actors are similar to Telugu people in terms of looks, it is easy for them to take up the role of a local bad guy. They are learning the new language fast as well as Telugu is often easier to learn for these Tamil actors. Harish Uthaman, a Malayali who grew up in Coimbatore and has recently worked in Srimanthudu and Jil is of the same opinion as well.
Most of these actors playing villains in Telugu films are well established actors in other film industries. It is thus beneficial for both the actors and the Telugu film industry that they are not hesitating or are afraid to take up new roles in films with a different language. Actor Arun Vijay said that even though he had already made a name back in the state of Tamil Nadu, he doesn’t mind working in other states’ film industries as he is always looking for new set of audiences to please and new waters to explore. These actors also efficiently have taken the ruthless style of villains to a whole new level.