“I’ve done only things I’ve liked, and I’m happy that others have liked them, too. I hope it keeps going that way. But l would never want to do films which please just one set of audience; they should connect with everyone.”

I want my films to make money first. Awards and all can come later.

As an actor, you create a character from your understanding of what you have heard and your observations. Eventually, every film is an extension of the images that I have seen or what I have heard or read somewhere.

I try to choose characters that don’t remind the audience of my previous roles. I make a conscious effort for that.

I am a bad boy. I don’t come across clearly to a lot of people, so I am bad for them.

I will happily sit at home and take care of the house.

It’s the failure of my debut film which made me an actor, which made me want to succeed in the industry. But that doesn’t mean I regret whatever choices I’ve made over the years. No, not even ‘Kaiyethum Doorathu!’

I often see only my mistakes. I always feel I could have done better. Every artist goes through it.

I’m not a person who goes out of my way to change my look. I like my characters to look as natural as possible.

I wasn’t really sure about the kind of films I wanted to be a part of. That’s when I saw ‘Aaranya Kaandam.’ I was stunned; it was such a stylish film.

I want my films to do the talking. I feel if people have to understand me better, I should do more good films. I just want them to know me through my films.

I am not affected or carried away by success or failure.

I love the forest. It is the place where you hear yourself better.

Mistakes happen, and then you try to overcome those. I like that process.

Mohan Raja is an interesting filmmaker. He is constantly, if I may use the word, contradicting himself. He explains a scene, and then he will try to break that and rebuild it. That, to me, is filmmaking. Every scene is constructed after a lot of discussions.

When I am with my friends, I am comfortable.

The closest encounter I had with films in my childhood was sitting on the lap of my father at a shooting set, and he would say ‘rain,’ and it started raining, and then he would say ‘song,’ and people started dancing. I thought I was sitting on God’s lap.

Any show that’s bringing in a young audience is doing a good thing, because that’s the only way that theater will continue to grow.

I think the British audience might be more open-minded with some of my imagery and weird choices.

There are jokes I tell in the show that don’t get laughs unless I am in front of an audience of critical thinkers.

Hollywood has to appeal to the broadest audience, and when it comes to most social and economic issues, America is progressive. Because of that, the messages that are in Hollywood movies tend to be, for instance, pro-environment.

All the other audience members are going to be dead soon!

As far as how much you listen to the audience, you listen to them when they really hate something.

When you dance and move around it creates a different reaction from the audience – they love it.

Long gone are the days of the stylised old James Bond films with Roger Moore karate chopping his way through the bad guys – audiences are not going to buy it anymore.