There are many interesting choices in Varun Tej’s filmography. Not all of them might have worked but there’s a perceptible effort to explore new genres and stand out from the clutter. “I’m very clear that I shouldn’t do the kind of films that all my contemporaries are doing,” he said ahead of the release of Gandeevadhari Arjuna, an action thriller, in August 2023. The film didn’t work. Likewise, Antariksham 9000 KMPH (2018), a thriller set in space, and Ghani (2022), a sports drama, too backfired at the box office, while crowd-pullers films he has been a part of, such as Fida (2017) and Gaddalakonda Ganesh (2019) rewarded him fittingly.
When his attempts to do something novel don’t yield the desired results, doesn’t he feel tempted to embrace the other, historically more rewarding side of cinema? He pauses before answering the question. “The rate of success for experimental films and commercial films is the same, I believe. People need to understand that it’s a mammoth task to make a successful commercial film. I think it’s harder than making an experimental film because you have to hold the film with a small emotion and heroism, while also catering to a wider based of audience. It’s a very tough job. And I wouldn’t call these experiments my comfort zone either. Even when I did F2, F3 and Gaddalakonda Ganesh, I felt comfortable.”