Milind Soman is gearing up for an exciting new project as he joins Vijay Sethupathi in the upcoming series Kaattaan. In an exclusive conversation with mid-day, Soman opened up about the role, his experience working in South Indian productions and the kind of characters that continue to motivate him as an actor.
On returning to South Cinema
Soman will be seen playing a character named Sivettan in the series. Speaking about returning to Tamil projects, the actor said he has been part of the South Indian film industry before but Kaataan marks a new experience for him in the streaming space.
“Well, I have done South Indian films before, Tamil films, Telugu films. It’s my first series. And I did my first Tamil film, I think, maybe 17 years ago. And it was great fun. And I did a few more. But then they were offering me a similar role in all these films. So eventually I said, I don’t want to do this same kind of role anymore.”
He explained that he is always drawn to characters that offer something different from what he has done earlier, regardless of how big the role may be.
“If something may be positive, then I can do it. So I don’t mind the length of the role or the importance of the role. It just has to be something different from what I did before. So it can be the gardener, the cook, the uncle, grandfather, whatever it is.”
Soman shared that after turning down repetitive roles, it took several years before more varied opportunities began coming his way.
“So eventually, I mean, 10 years later, I started getting roles like that. And this one also came to me. So that was one reason to say yes to it, because number one, it’s a Tamil production. And it’s a positive role. The role is interesting. The character is interesting. And the people were great. That’s all that I look at.”
On working with Vijay Sethupathi
The actor also spoke warmly about working with Vijay Sethupathi and recalled how comfortable the atmosphere on set was.
“Nothing really funny, but he’s just a really sweet person. You know, he introduced me to his family and we chatted. And I discovered he was an accountant. And it was nice. He made everything very comfortable. So every scene that we did together, there was no stress, you know, bad stress in doing those scenes. It was great fun. Very relaxed. The way I like it.”
Reflecting on his long career, Soman said filmmakers often approach him with preconceived ideas about who he is as a person. “Usually people come to me looking at me over the last 35 years. They don’t come to me looking at, ‘Oh, you did that role and we want something like that.’ Because that’s not something that I like either.”
“If they say you did that role and we want something like this, immediately I say no. So it has to be something like, ‘This is something that you’ve never done.’ That interests me.”
He also finds it fascinating to hear how directors perceive him after watching his journey in the industry. “I know who I am. But I want to know what is their impression of me. It’s interesting to see the way they see me and then try to turn it around some way.”