Dhanush

Venkat Prabhu is a popular Indian actor who appears in Kollywood films under the screen name Dhanush.At the age of 20, he made his Kollywood debut in the film Thulluvadho Illamai in 2002, which was directed by his brother Selvaraghavan. This movie was a surprisingly huge success and started his career in the industry. This was followed by Kadhal Kondein and Thiruda Thirudi (2003), both of which turned out to be successful at the box office. With these continuous string of blockbusters his salary skyrocketed to Rs.30 million per film.

However succeeding films tumbled one by one and his career seemed to be have come to a standstill until the release of Pudhupettai. His action venture Sullan (2004) started good but then turned out to be a box office failure. His other films Pudhukottaiyill Irindhu Saravanan, Dreams (2004), Adhu Oru Kana Kaalam (2005) did poorly at the box office. After a long spell of low-budget films, he came back with the Pudhupettai (Dhoolpet in Telugu) which was again directed by his brother but that flopped. However he came back with a blockbuster in 2005 with, Thiruvilayadal Arambam. His upcoming films are Parattai alias Azhagu Sundaram and Desiya Nedunchalai.

Dhanush admits that his busy schedule and clash of dates, compounded by his fracture which kept him in bed for some weeks, had created some date problems. But promised the actor, 'Henceforth, I will act in only one film at a time. And I'll sign a new film only after I've completed the old one." The hero also added that he would make sure that his films would have varied themes. "Sullan is the first total action-oriented film I am doing", says Dhanush.

Some of the producers have taken him to court, there were complaints about his not keeping to his earlier commitments. Why were the producers turning against him? Claiming that he also fails to understand why he is being targeted, Dhanush says, "I don't understand why it's happening to me, and I don't think I have the maturity or the position to comment on their action. All I can say is that it's my bad time!"

Claiming that he's not signed any new films recently, Dhanush also brushed aside the accusation that he's demanding a few crores as remuneration. "I've never ever gone and asked anyone to pay me crores," insists the actor. Dhanush's lean frame has at times elicited negative comments from certain quarters. But the actor is unfazed. "I'm 22, and I'm playing roles that suit my age. And for that, I think this physique is enough."With so many young debutants entering the field, who does Dhanush think he has to compete with? He responds with, "I do not have the time or the inclination to think about all this. I am not competing with anybody. Nor do I have the desire to be the No 1 hero."

The actor has been labelled as south India's Bruce Lee. But not very comfortable with the label, Dhanush says, "I've asked my fans to defer from giving me such titles."

Actor Partibhan had mentioned at a function about Dhanush's girl friend in the US, and advised the actor to concentrate on his career and not be distracted by matters of the heart. But Dhanush brushes aside the girl friend matter and claims that there's no basis to the rumour.The actor's other films have been set aside so that he can complete 'Sullan'. Directed by Ramana (who directed 'Thirumalai') and produced by Salem Chandrasekhar, it has debutante Sindhu Thulani as his leading lady.