It's no cakewalk for star kids

Sharadha Narayanan
First Published : 22 Oct 2008 02:05:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 22 Oct 2008 02:40:42 PM IST

Tamil cinema seems to be at a phase when an actor’s name is only as important as his surname. From Vijay to the latest kid on the block, Atharva (actor Murali’s son), it’s the kin of stars who seem to rule the roost, and the Ajiths, Bharaths and Madhavans of the industry are a rare phenomenon.

And these star kids haven’t escaped the stereotypes of the typecasting- ridden industry. They climb the easiest route up the ladder, throw tantrums and end up being successful goes the popular belief. But does it really ensure a success and do these kids get the easy way out even with the audiences? 'Sakkarakatti' was a dream debut in every sense for two important kids of the Kollywood family: The son of producer Kalaipuli Dhanu whose marketing skills have struck gold and the son of filmmaker Backiaraj, who is considered the king of screenplay, were launched. But film pundits aver that it hasn’t been big enough to make this the best movie of the year.

Speak to actor Shantanu about it and he rubbishes talks that he threw tantrums in the first place. Industry has it that he was offered Sasikumar’s role in 'Subramaniyapuram' and Shantanu, a debutant then, suggested changes in the script if he had to do the role. “It’s true that I was offered the role the director eventually did himself. And I did suggest changes but it was in the interest of the script and those were changes even director Ameer approved of. I didn’t do the movie for another reason altogether,” he explains.

Nine in 10 actor aspirants would swear that the toughest part of becoming a hero is getting noticed and star kids don’t deny that they are far more noticeable. “I agree we get easier openings but success isn’t about doing a movie. It’s about doing a successful movie,” Shantanu adds.

That’s an idea anybody would endorse and there are glaring instances of such popular star sons not making it big. Arun Vijay who comfortably adapted himself to any role that came his way hasn’t still tasted the success he deserves.

And there’s Udhaya. Being a son of a producer and the brother of a popular director (Kireedam Vijay) hasn’t ensured him a successful route in cinema. “Actually, things have been so bad that what’s getting released as my fifth movie is actually my 13th movie,” he says. “And I can assure you that I will not overcharge as an actor,” he said at an event, much to the surprise of the audience. In fact, the actor went to the extent of saying he was prepared even to work on a fixed monthly salary, as that was how much he loved cinema.

So, for every Vijay, Suriya, Jeyam Ravi and Simbhu, there is a Vikranth, Udhaya, Sivaji and Arun Vijay, still hoping to make it big. An old wise hag in Tamil cinema once said if you are successful, it’s only because you were worked on by the right hands. In short, a big hero is a man who just got lucky, met the right directors and picked the right script. And the star kids, will sure vouch for this dictum.