Vijay Deverakonda opened up about the failures he has faced and said that some of his mistakes could have probably been avoided if he was from a filmy family.
Once touted as India’s next biggest star, Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda’s career is now an example of how flying too close to the sun can scorch even the brightest of stars. With not a single box office success in the last seven years, Deverakonda’s “image” is now like a shadow of his previous persona. However, the actor is currently hoping for a big comeback with Kingdom, a film that he and his fans have high hopes for.
Recently, Deverakonda opened up about the failures he has faced over the years and said that some of his mistakes could have been avoided if he had come from a film family with a strong foundation and a guiding voice.
He also revealed that he went ahead with some projects despite not fully believing in their scripts, as he felt he did not have the voice to demand sophistication. Without explicitly using the word “nepotism”, he told The Hollywood Reporter India, “I was never in a position to tell a director… I don’t think people outside the industry would understand this… but when you don’t come from some kind of ‘establishment’ and you don’t have that support system, you don’t have the space to tell the director that you are not ready to shoot with this script right now and need to work on it more.”
He added, “Whereas another actor, who has the same experience but has support around him, knows from childhood that he doesn’t need to go for a shoot. Or his father will come and tell him, ‘No, spend two-three months more. I will get two-three more writers for you.’ I didn’t have that space until recently. Now, if I’m not happy with something, I talk to producers and directors, and say ‘I won’t shoot this because the producer’s money, the director’s career, and my face and the reputation I have built are all important.'”
Early in his career, Deverakonda said he would often go ahead with projects despite doubts, simply because a producer insisted or a director believed in the vision. But today, he has adopted a new approach. He added, “Now, I’ve decided that if we do this, we should all already be perfectly happy with it. So, this is something I’ve learned to do and feel comfortable doing.
I’ve got that space, leverage and sense of security in life to be able to have those conversations.” Since the success of Taxiwaala (2018), Deverakonda hasn’t had a single hit and his subsequent films like Dear Comrade (2019), World Famous Lover (2020), Liger (2022), Kushi (2023) and The Family Star (2024) performed poorly at the box office. The only success he had during this period was Prabhas-starrer Kalki 2898 AD (2024), in which he played a cameo role. Directed by Jersey director Gowtham Tinnanuri, Kingdom will hit the screens on July 31.
