When Sibiraj turned dhoti-clad gangster

Actor Sibiraj has revealed that it took two months for him to master the art of wearing a dhoti and get comfortable in it for his gangster's role in forthcoming Tamil fantasy comedy "Pokkiri Raja", which releases in cinemas on Friday.

"I play a gangster who roams around in veshti (dhoti). I always wanted to do a dhoti-clad character. I love wearing dhoti, but I seldom wear it in my daily life. Since I was expected to wear a dhoti throughout the film, I started wearing it even before it went on the floors," Sibiraj told IANS.

He started wearing dhoti almost three months before the shoot.

"I wore it everywhere I went. In malls, temples and even when I boarded flights, I travelled in dhoti, because it was important that I got comfortable in it before the shoot," he said.

In the film, he plays a character called Cooling glass Guna.

"It's a very interesting character. Unlike a regular gangster, I get to be goofy in this role. The cooling glass I sport is like a character of its own," he said, adding that if it was not for his director's crystal clear vision, he wouldn't have pulled off his role.

The film is directed by Ramprakash Rayappa, and it also stars Jiiva and Hansika Motwani.

"I didn't have to do any homework. My director would show us what he exactly wants and then would let us improvise and play with the character," he said.

While the trailer indicates that Sibiraj might be playing the villain, he thinks otherwise.

"I wouldn't call it a villain's role. Both Jiiva and I are at loggerheads throughout the film, but there's nothing like a hero-villain clash. Our roles will be like the ones essayed by Prabhu and Karthik in Agni Natchathiram," he said.

The project gave Sibiraj an opportunity to work with his long-time friend Jiiva.

"We were supposed to work together on several occasions. Besides the film's interesting script, it was Jiiva that drew me to this project. He's a very talented actor and I learnt quite a bit from the experience of working with him," he added.

Talking about the film, he said that the fantasy and comedy elements will appeal to kids and adults alike.

Besides "Pokkiri Raja", Sibiraj awaits the release of horror-comedy "Jackson Durai". He will also start shooting for a yet-untitled dark comedy later this month with a newcomer.