Vijay Deverakonda recalls his struggle in the film industry, says 'I used to be out of work'

Vijay Deverakonda has now opened up about his struggles in the film industry. The actor recalled how he used to be out of work.

VIjay Deverakonda may be a big superstar now, however, things weren't always so rosy for him. The actor had his fair share of struggles in the industry that made him who he is now. In a recent event in Mumbai for Liger promotions, Vijay opened up about his struggling days and how he overcame it. The actor also recalled being out of work for days and how it affected him.

Talking about his struggling days in the entertainment industry, Vijay Deverakonda said, "It was not easy. It was probably the single hardest thing I had to do in my life to find a platform where I could be seen as an actor. I started with theatre and when I finished that, I thought that I would announce I want to become an actor and all the producers will line up. Suddenly, I realised that you can’t even get their attention. In theatres, whenever I used to do a show, other directors would line up to ask me to act in their play. Nothing this sort happened when I wanted to join the film industry. I didn’t even know where to go to, whom to talk to. I used to scan through websites posting casting calls.”

Vijay added, “Then I played a supporting role in a film and then again a year of no work. The assistant director of that film later roped me in one of his other films because I had forged a good bond with him. That gave me my secondary role. I was the second lead in it and it was a hit film. I thought ab milenge ache roles but again there was nothing coming my way. I got supporting roles but I wanted to do something big. I waited and then me and my friends made a film from our own money and some investors in just Rs 60 lakh. We decided we won’t take any salary from it. That film, Pelli Choopulu, opened small but turned out to be a hit and went on to earn Rs 25-30 crore. I even got a national award for it. That launched me and suddenly everybody knew me. Then Arjun Reddy came my way in 2017 and I have never been out of work since then."

Written and directed by Puri Jagannadh, Liger is a sports film in which Vijay Deverakonda essays the role of a boxer. The film is jointly produced by Puri Jagannadh, Karan Johar and Charmme Kaur. Ananya Panday will make her Telugu debut with this film. Mike Tyson has been roped in for an extended cameo in Liger. Ramya Krishnan, Ronit Roy, Ali and Makarand Deshpande play supporting roles.