Actor Arun Vijay’s ‘Oh My Dog’ released on April 21 on Amazon Prime. Tamil actor Vijaykumar, his son Arun Vijay and grandson Arnav play prominent roles in the movie. The entire process began when actor Suriya sent an Instagram video to director Sarov Shanmugham.
Shanmugham had always dreamt of making a film for children, according to Fiirstpost.com.
No one was ready to produce a film for children so he was struggling to get a decent budget. He added, “I waited for a long time, and then pitched the film to 2D in 2018. Things fell in place almost immediately.”
The film is based off an agility competition and features a lot of children, sports and dogs. The film shot with more than 100 native and foreign breeds of dogs. Shanmugham was doubtful if Arun Vijay would agree to be in a children’s film, “He did, and getting all three generations of the family in my film was an added bonus. I did not even dream of that.” said Shanmugham.
As for Arun Vijay, his biggest attraction about the film were the dogs, “I love animals and I love kids, and I’ve never really worked with them in a film before, so this was such a good opportunity,” says Arun, who adds that working on the film taught everyone the value of patience. “You can still instruct kids, but dogs dance to their own beat. You have to be patient to get them in that zone, and certain shots have to be candid. You cannot rush things and you have to be alert, yet patient. It was a great experience.”
Arun Vijay’s son Arnav also loves dogs and his character in the film is similar to how he is in real. “He’s a naughty kid and loves dogs and that’s all he had to do on screen too. And, I was surprised that he never looked at appa or me as his grandfather and father when it was time to act. He happily slid into the role of a co-actor. But then, even I’ve been like that when working with my father. Off sets, he’s appa, but on set, he’s a co-star. I’m happiest that appa and Arnav are sharing screen space.” Says Arun Vijay.
Apparently, Vijaykumar was more confident that his grandson will pull off the role, Arun Vijay said, “They spend a lot of time together and my father just knew that he would be comfortable acting. As a father and actor, I kept my distance on set, because I did not want to influence my son in any way. I wanted his innocence to be captured. He still lisps, and I think that is a huge plus too for this character.”
Arnav also commented on his role, saying, “I also love dogs and enjoy playing with my friends, and I am also a little naughty, I was very comfortable working with appa and thatha and they taught me some tricks of acting which were very helpful. But the best part about doing this movie is working with so many animals,” he smiles.
Through ‘Oh My Dog’, Arun Vijay made an attempt to reach a different section of audiences. The actor says, “I felt very comfortable with the team, and I trust Arivazhagan. OTT and films are a different ballgame, but I see that OTT is offering many performers a good chance to explore what they are capable of. You get the space to try different things.”
Shanmugham added, “As a creator, I knew there is a big vacuum for this genre across India. The last big children’s film I remember is My Dear Kuttichaathan. I wanted to make a film rooted in India, speaking about our bonds and family structures, our street vendors, basically something with the fragrance of our lives. I wanted to make a film kids will enjoy, and I wanted to make it with good production values.”
He adds that the film also marks the beginning of his new journey, “I came to Chennai to study literature at Presidency, then I joined and discontinued a degree in law, I worked with filmmakers like Gandhi Krishna and Vasanthabalan and Suseendran before branching out on my own. I’m 46 now, and finally my dream is coming true.”
