Vikranth plays 'suave villain' in 'Gethu'

Actor Vikranth, who loves to experiment with offbeat roles occasionally, says he enjoyed playing a sophisticated antagonist in forthcoming Tamil thriller "Gethu", in which he has only a single dialogue.

"I've always enjoyed experimenting with different roles and that has been the highlight of my career," Vikranth, who is known for his work in films such as "Pandiya Naadu" and "Thakka Thakka", told IANS.

"What I really liked about my character in 'Gethu' is that it's very unconventional and quite different from how villains are usually portrayed in Tamil cinema. I play a very stylish character with just one dialogue," he said.

Directed by Thirukumaran, the film hits the screens worldwide on January 14. It stars Udhayanidhi Stalin and Amy Jackson in the lead roles.

Vikranth says the film fulfilled his long-time desire to look stylish on screen.

"I think all actors want to look stylish on screen. When this role was offered to me, I was told how stylish it will look on screen and that really caught my attention. It's not just the appearance of the character, but the way it has been designed is also very stylish," he said.

The other factor that appealed Vikranth the most about the role is its characterisation.

"It's a story about a sniper from Indian Navy MARCOS. Everything about this character has been handled with subtlety and restraint," said Vikranth, who really didn't have to do much research for his role.

"Director Thirukumaran took care of the research. Even before I was approached, he had gathered all the information needed, so it really wasn't so tough to slip into the shoes of the character," he said.

The tough part, however, for Vikranth was to ditch his boyish charm and shed weight.

"Since I play a character from the Navy, I had to look muscular. I was told that I had to lose all the fat on my face such that it looks angular. I also grew thick beard and wore contact lens. It wasn't easy to physically adapt to the character," he said.

The 31-year old is expanding his base to Telugu filmdom. He's soon going to start working on a Telugu project with a leading star.