I was worried about Bala. I hoped someone would give him another film. He deserved it. He too had struggled for so long.
Slowly, as the cinders would flicker and finally burst, the film caught fire.
Without this knowledge that day I decided to go for a walk.
I stepped out. It was a sultry day. I was just about to cross the road at Besant Nagar. Bus signal when a guy in the bus passing by yelled out,
'Chiyaan! Da! Namba Chiyaan da! It's our Chiyaan!' And suddenly there were over ten people on the streets who had surrounded me. Some laughing, some Crying, and all of them chanting: Chiyaan, Chiyaan. My only thought was: ten people had actually seen the movie! Ten whole people.
Wow, I was being mobbed! A tiny, minuscule mob but I was being mobbed!
I quickly turned around and went home. Shaila opened the door and said,
'Kenny! The theatre guy called. They are not taking off the movie. In fact they are actually extending the morning show to full day.'
Bala called. 'Kenny? The movie is picking up, da! Today's shows are houseful. Can you believe that? Houseful!!!'
People would cry out, 'Chiyaan! Chiyaan' when they saw me. I was called a trendsetter.
I went to see the movie along with my mom.
My film! This is the first time in my life that I saw people clapping and whistling to a film of mine. They lifted me, kissed me and almost ripped my shirt off after a show here in Chennai.
In that crowd my Mom got hurt who came to watch the movie along with me.
“Let’s go to the doctor.” I said.
“Vendam da. Idu appadiye irukkunum. (No, my child. This scar should remain as it is.”, She said. Tears in her eyes!
Just a thought in my mind. Long back when I was struggling to make it big, she told me to quit cinema. “Kenny ! Leave it da. This industry is not favour to us. You just leave it. Leave cinema. I cannot see you struggling so hard and facing all those insults.”
And I’d replied, “No Mom. Everyone has his own day. That day will surely will come for me too. I’ll make it big. Till that moment please wait mummy…Please.”
I laughed and cried the most at that time, after understanding my fate had me go through all the troubles for this recognition.
Trendsetter. Super-hit actor. Best actor award in just about all awards announced that year in Tamil Nadu. Film invited to every major film festival all over the world. Remakes lined up in Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam and kannada. Vikram--the only just candidate to Kamalahaasan's super actor throne.
Shivaji. Kamal. And now Vikram?
After fifteen years, it took just
one film, on mega powerful performance with body-defying changes in physique and appearance, to go from non-entity to full- blown star.
Can you believe it? After all that had happened, can I believe it? Actually I can. That is the power, the mystique, the madness of cinema. Where anything, literally anything can happen. And it did. With me. About time too.
Like I said before, I really represent every cliché that surrounds the movie industry. Unbelievable struggle, cocky directors who look down upon you, dance masters who make you wait in one corner while they reach the main hero the steps, the heroines who won't accept a film because you are the hero, producers who won't invest money in you no matter how talented you are.
Then the tide turns.
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