This Article is From Apr 26, 2016

Roja Actor Arvind Swamy Doesn't 'Expect' People to Know His Name

Roja Actor Arvind Swamy Doesn't 'Expect' People to Know His Name

Arvind Swamy photographed in Mumbai.

Highlights

  • Arvind Swamy featured in films like Roja and Bombay.
  • 'I don't get offended if people don't know me,' said Arvind.
  • 'Stardom doesn't appeal' to Arvind Swamy.
Mumbai: With hits like Roja and Bombay, actor Arvind Swamy became a household name but a long sabbatical and almost 20 years later, Arvind said that he is comfortable if people do not recognise him as stardom is something he never craved for in the first place.

Arvind was introduced as an actor by filmmaker Mani Ratnam in 1991 with the Tamil film Thalapathi. The 45-year-old actor rose to fame with the success of Roja (1992) and Bombay (1995).

Arvind, whose last Hindi film was Raja Ko Rani Se Pyaar Ho Gaya in 2000, took a sabbatical and spent a decade in trying his hand in business. The actor returned to full-fledged acting with Mani Ratnam's film Kadal in 2013 and will be seen next in the Bollywood film Dear Dad.

"Stardom doesn't appeal to me in anyway. Of course, I want people to like my work, but in my mind I've consciously created a line where I don't think of myself as a big star. I don't expect people to know my name. I don't get offended if people don't know me," Arvind told PTI.

"I just want to be myself. I want to act in films and not expect any special treatment. I carry my own bags on the sets and I don't have assistants around me. I am very comfortable this way," added Arvind.

Arvind also featured in Telugu and Malayalam films like Mounam and Devaraagam apart from starring along with Juhi Chawla in the 1998 Hindi movie Saat Rang Ke Sapne which was produced by Amitabh Bachchan.

Despite getting immense recognition, Arvind wanted to "run away" from stardom as he was unable to deal with it.

"I was very young when I made my debut. I was almost like a kid getting that kind of success and adulation which was difficult to cope. I just wanted to run away from it. Now I am prepared for it, in the sense that I know what I have been through. I can see it as love from people, but back then I found it stifling," said Arvind.

Arvind, who will be seen in a Hindi film after almost 15 years, said that he never expected the break to be this long in which he went through several ups and downs in life.

"Honestly, I didn't expect it to be such a long break. I thought for a few years that I would do something. Then, I decided to single parent my kids and then I had an accident. I went through a rough time physically and it took me a while to recover," said Arvind.
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