Becoming MGR: How Arvind Swami got into shape for ‘Thalaivii’

Actor Arvind Swami on getting into the character of MGR for upcoming film ‘Thalaivii’, starring Kangana Ranaut

As a child, growing up in a farm in Nazarathpettai near Poonamallee, Arvind Swami used to take long drives every day to get to his school in Adyar. On his way, he would always peer out of the window while crossing Ramapuram, where matinee idol MG Ramachandran lived. “Every day, I used to look at that blue-grey gate,” recalls Arvind, sitting comfortably in Thalaivii director Vijay’s Nungambakkam office. “I would see him drive out many times, and get excited looking at him from a distance.” His MGR connection did not stop there. A few years later, two German Shepherd pups that were born in his farm were bought by the MGR family. Much later, when Arvind’s father, VD Swami, who was involved in setting up Sankara Nethralaya, invited the actor-politician for the inauguration, Arvind recalls “walking alongside him and just looking at him”.