EXCLUSIVE | Siddhant Chaturvedi: 'Malavika Mohanan should have her own Malavika Universe, my character in Yudhra can't be compared to Amitabh Bachchan because...'

Excel Entertainment’s upcoming Yudhra has indeed left everyone stunned with its two action-packed trailers, while the songs from the film have further fueled the excitement. While this has set the perfect tone for the arrival of this action thriller, the cast is taking the film to new heights with their extensive promotional tour.

And in an exclusive interview with Firstpost, the lead actors of the film Siddhant Chaturvedi and Malavika Mohanan spoke about this much-awaited action flick, what do their respective names mean, the exotic locations the film boasts off, and the slick action scenes of the enterprise.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

What do your respective names Yudhra and Nikhat mean?

Malavika: Oh I never thought about it. I only looked at it as name, I don’t know the meaning, what’s the meaning Siddhant?

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Siddhant. I don’t even know what my name means. We liked the sound of Rudra, which is Shiv’s avatar, and rudra combined with anger means that, in Taandav mode. But we have coined name and why he’s named this way is something you’ll have to watch the film for. But what’s there in a name?

What are the locations you both have shot at because the film looks slick and stylish?

Malavika: We started our first schedule in Portugal, a beautiful island which is off the coast of Portugal and not a part of the main land, called Madeira, which is Cristiano Ronaldo’s hometown and that’s what the place is famous for. Our song Saathiya is shot on this lovely beach, but that was not in Madeira.

This is a character that has severe anger issues. So was the prep more mental than physical or was it a mix of both?

Siddhant: Every character comes with a challenge. We all feel angry, everybody feels anger. I’m sure even you must have felt angry at some point in your life. And physical prep as well because this is an action film, you want to avoid injuries and look as authentic as possible. So these two were the blends of what I did.

Malavika, the last time we spoke, you said if Thangalan is Earth, The Raja Saab is Saturn, Rudra is Mars. Mars is one of the hottest planets and because this is a character driven by anger and rage, is that why you chose this planet for the film?

It did not need to have that intellectual depth what I was trying to say is that all the three projects that am working on are completely different from one another.

Siddhant: It’s called the Malavika Universe

Malavika: The MCU (Laughs). Lokesh Kanagaraj has a thing called LCU. In every film, he’s stitching the characters together. Vikram and Leo and all these films. All these movies are versatile and completely different genres. It’s a good thing I said Mars about Yudhra because it’s keeping with the nature of our film.

And what more can you tell us about Nikhat?

When I read the script, I felt my character was a breath of softness and tenderness in a very testosterone driven man’s world. She brings that much needed feminine energy to this story so that’s what Nikhat is to this film and Yudhra’s character.

Siddhant, when you play such intense characters, how do you get into the psyche of these people? Do you isolate yourself, lock yourself in a room for weeks?

No, I stay with my family. I have Chai in the morning and Daal Chawal in the afternoon. And I go to the shoot the next day. I do my prep in very different kind of a way and it depends from film to film. I just read the script a lot of times and whatever comes my way, I make notes of it. And then I let my director do the magic, so that’s what all it is.

Amitabh Bachchan became the Angry Young Man of Hindi cinema because of the circumstances he was surrounded by. Is your character’s rage more personal and inherent?

We cannot compare such a huge legend to anything. So firstly, no comparisons, it’s absolutely different. It’s a personal angst and there’s an underdog story about how things happen in his life since his childhood. Aage ki kahaani jaane ke liye aap dekh sakte hain Yudhra 20 September ko.

Malavika, do you see any similarities between your characters in Thangalan and Yudhra?

They both fight for what they believe in. They stand for it. That’s the only commonality because as characters, they are so different. They both are fierce and they both fight (laughs). They should do a universe of Aarthi and Nikhat.

Siddhant, which was the toughest action scene for you?

Malavika: Even I want to know this

Siddhant: Can I answer this after you watch the film? It’s important and I’ll tell you why, because how can I describe ki pehle aisa hota hai phir aisa hua, so you’ll have to watch the film for that.

Malavika: Tell me after this interview, even I am curious.