"I can’t remember the number of movies I have been offered" : Vidyut Jammwal!

Actor and martial artist Vidyut Jammwal believes talent and hard work can outshine everything else. Although the actor works in the competitive world of showbiz, he has always chosen to remain low-key. “I believe that if you’re good at what you do, you will get noticed,” he says.

You have three releases coming up after nearly three years…

These three years have just flown by. I have been working very hard. There’s a lot of excitement. Whatever I was training for will now be seen on the big screen. It is an overwhelming feeling.

You said you don’t mind being stereotyped as an action hero…

Any movie I sign will have action in it. It is like hiring a top basketball player and not asking him to play his game. I believe in performing the real stuff. My path is different. Having said that, I am particular about the character and the films I associate with.

What’s your reason to be in the film business?

Today, actors learn how to do action so they can be in the movies. I am a martial artist and a real fighter, and that’s why I am in the movies. My journey has been like that of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan’s, who were trained in martial arts and then began acting. I am lucky that people thought I could do something different. I aim to showcase the kind of action that hasn’t been explored in Hindi films.

Apparently, you’ve refused big-budget movies. Why?

I can’t remember the number of movies I have been offered (laughs), but there have been many. Honestly, I didn’t believe in what I was offered. Some of them were big productions, with the so-called ‘big roles’. But I am not impatient. I will not sign a movie just because I want to be in it. I must feel 100% sure about a film to take it up.

How can Hindi films be better when it comes to action?

I can speak for myself. I am working on movies with a certain budget, so I can only depend on myself. I don’t believe in computer-generated graphics (CG) or VFX, although it’s a great space to explore. But with the film-makers who believe in me, I give my 200%. I don’t use stunt doubles, cables or CG. People say they learn martial arts in three months. An art cannot be learnt in a few months; it has to be learnt throughout your life.

The action has three releases this year - Commando 2, Yaara, and Baadshaho.