I wasn't keen to act in Dhanush's Naane Varuven: Saani Kaayidham actor Selvaraghavan

Selvaraghavan, whose latest release was Arun Matheswaran's Saani Kaayidham, streaming on Amazon Prime Video, says, nobody can portray the complete life of a character in a film. "We can only portray glimpses and parts of it. So, when I’m playing a different guy, let’s try to think like him rather than carrying baggage like past experiences and characters. I was fresh about the character and that’s one of the fascinating things about acting," he tells Film Companion.

Speaking about the process of being on another director’s sets, Selvaraghavan told Film Companion, "If I wasn’t enjoying it, I would’ve walked out of the sets on the second day. More than enjoying, it’s about learning so much. So, that is what pulled me more and more into it."

Selvaraghavan is more excited about Naane Varuven. Starring Indhuja Ravichandran and Elli AvrRam as the female leads, the film has Dhanush playing dual roles. Apart from directing Dhanush after 11 years, Selvaraghavan will also be playing a crucial role in the film. In an interview with Pinkvilla, Selvaraghavan had assured, "Expect the unexpected with this one. And, I hope the audience will like Naane Varuven!"

Further, the director added that he was forced to act in this one, as one of the actors didn't turn up on time. "My entire unit forced me to act. It was not my intention. There was no pre-planning either!"

Is Pudhupettai 2 in the making? "A lot of people want a sequel to the Dhanush film. I'll certainly do it when the time comes," he tells Pinkvilla.

Selvaraghavan told Film Companion, "I would’ve made Aayirathil Oruvan (2010) and Pudhupettai (2006) as a series. It has still got potential and can be done as a sequel. If we do it, it’ll be completely different, and we’ll have more freedom. I think one day we’ll get to do both as a series. I would love to do it."

So, what, according to Selva, constitutes good acting? He tells The Hindu, “As a filmmaker, what is important to me is that it shouldn’t feel like you are acting. You have to hone your talent and find different ways to approach a character. There are subtleties and nuances you need to get right. When I direct my actors, I slowly feed them information about how the character should walk or talk. That is how they get the big picture.”

Naane Varuven has music by Yuvan Shankar Raja and cinematography by Om Prakash. The film is produced by Kalaipuli S Thanu.