“Southern
film industry, and in particular, the Telugu Film industry has raised the bar
very high in the last few years,” says actor Arvind Krishna in an interview,
adding that the industry has become a destination for many Bollywood actors.

“Telugu
movies are casting leading Bollywood actors and actresses in Telugu films and
vice versa. So, the Telugu industry and even the Southern film industry has
become a destination in itself now, globally. Our movies are really pushing the
envelope in taking the movies to the next level. How people perceive South
Indian movies is very different and things have changed drastically now. It’s a
good change and it’s a great time to be a part of the South Indian film
industry. And I’m proud to be an actor in the Telugu industry now,” he told
Opoyi.

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The
success of Tamil-Telugu mega-blockbuster ‘Baahubali: The Beginning in 2015’ made
Bollywood look at the South film industry with new-found respect. Many leading
stars from Hindi film industry, including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Taapsee
Pannu, and even Priyanka Chopra have featured in movie projects down South.
Alia Bhatt, Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgn are also gearing up to make their debut
down south with films ‘RRR’ and ‘KGF: Chapter 2’.

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Arvind
made his debut in Telugu cinema with the 2010 film ‘Alasyam Amrutham’ and is
known for his hit films like ‘It’s my love story, ‘Rushi’, and ‘Mana Kurralle’.

His
latest film was “Shukra” that was released on OTT in April, this year.


‘Shukra’ is a film that’s very close to my heart because it’s the first film
that I have done in quite a while. And the Film Director Suku Purvaj is the one
who actually convinced me to come back to films. He (Suku Purvaj) said, “you
know, there’s an angle in you which I see, which a lot of people perhaps
haven’t exploited.” And he pushed me to be myself. He (Suku Purvaj) said, “Be
yourself in this field. Don’t adhere to particular norms, because there aren’t
any.”

“It’s
out on Amazon Prime now, and I’m hoping more people will see it. It’s a new-age
thriller. Multiple genres are involved, that’s why I’m calling it “new-age”.
And it’s been done on a very tight budget, very smartly. And we had to overcome
a lot of odds to get this movie out, including the pandemic. And finally, we
did and the results have been good,” he said.

Talking
about OTT platforms, the actor said that shooting in times of corona is no less
than a task.

“What’s
happening now to the world at large is unprecedented and the film industry is
no exception. We have been affected very badly in terms of how the theatre
systems have come to a grinding halt. Of course, there’s a lot of very
interesting stuff that’s come on OTT. But at the same time, shooting now is
very difficult. Only content that has been shot now people are able to put out
on OTT.

“…
as an actor it’s difficult because, even if the whole crew is wearing a mask
and PPE kit, as an actor we are very vulnerable and exposed. So, a lot of
actors are scared to even step out, but of course, shootings that happened in
the last few months, and even I was a part of some, they are taking all the
measures they can…,” he added.

Also Read: Who is Rashmika Mandanna, top trending for her comments on Amitabh Bachchan

Very
few know that Arvind is also a professional basketball player.

“I
play professional basketball with FIBA 3X3 and in India with 3BL professional
basketball league. And I love the 3X3 format. It’s what T20 did to Cricket, 3X3
is doing the same to basketball, and now it’s going to be an Olympic sport as
well in the Tokyo Olympic 3X3 basketball. I’m still playing. In the prime of my
basketball days, I’m not moving away from basketball anytime soon. I will be
continuing to play. I’m waiting for things to get better for the next season to
start. I have little more bandwidth away from basketball and business that I
can focus on movies. And I also feel like this is the good time to do movies
now with so many more avenues that have come up for actors,” he said.

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A post shared by Arvind Krishna (@arvindkrishna5)

 Finally, what is the biggest takeaway that
these unprecedented times have given to him?

 “The biggest takeaway now is don’t take
anything or anyone for granted and always value what you have. Work towards
being your best self and at the same time, my basketball coach, what he says
comes to mind – “The strength of the wolf is the pack, and strength of the pack
is the wolf”. So I think it’s imperative that we as a society today look out
for each other because more than ever we need to be with people. We need to
turn to each other and not turn on each other. And I think of the poem Invictus
when I feel a little low,” he sums up.