Vijay Varma says he looks at 2019 as a turning point in his career; adds it helped shape his career
Titas Chowdhury (HINDUSTAN TIMES; December 29, 2019)

“Gully Boy has opened up interesting avenues for me. I’ve been getting meaty parts in films and on the web,” says Vijay Varma, who shot to fame with the film that released early this year. Post the film, the actor has had his hands full with four web shows, an adaptation of A Suitable Boy, and three feature films, Baaghi 3, Hurdang and Bumfaad.

Vijay is happy that members of the industry are taking a keen interest in him now. “Commercial filmmakers and people who create rich content are interested in me now. At the same time, there’s also been some noise in the journalism and the fashion community. It’s been pretty good and comprehensive. I’m also participating in it,” he says.

Ask him about Gully Boy not making it to the final Oscar nomination list in the Best International Feature Film category, and he says, “Though we all knew that it would be an uphill task, we were disappointed that the film didn’t make it. But it’s always good to fight. I’ve fought for so many years to say what I’ve wanted to say and do what I wanted to do. I understand the importance and joy of fighting.”

The actor is, however, happy that with his film, India could make “small inroads into the bigger world”. He says, “With Inside Edge, Lust Stories and Gully Boy, Zoey (Zoya Akhtar; filmmaker) tried to break into a bigger market. Right now, a lot of people in America know about Made In Heaven and Gully Boy. That, in itself, opens up the possibility to create content that’ll have a market outside India, even beyond the Indian diaspora.”

Encapsulating 2019, Vijay says, “I would look back at 2019 as a turning point in my life. A lot of stuff that I’ve been thinking and wanting to accomplish for years started happening in 2019. This was a landmark year that shaped my career as an actor. It has been a year full of great collaborations. I’m finally getting the chance to work in a capacity that I really appreciate.”

So, how does he plan on bidding farewell to an amazing year? “It has been a lot of hard work this year and so I look forward to ending the year with two days of doing absolutely nothing and probably just relax and be with my mum,” he signs off.