Actor Bobby Deol has drawn a humorous parallel among his recent South Indian co-stars—Thalapathy Vijay, Nandamuri Balakrishna, and Pawan Kalyan—noting that many of the leading men he faces off against on screen end up holding major political offices.
Deol plays the primary antagonist, Phoenix, opposite Vijay in Jana Nayagan, which marks Vijay’s final film appearance following his transition into full-time politics.
On Working with Vijay and His Reserved Stance
Speaking about his experience on set with Vijay, Bobby Deol revealed that the Tamil superstar prefers a low-profile approach when it comes to film promotions:
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Minimal Promotion Drive: “He doesn’t like to do too much promotion. He doesn’t do anything. He just believes, and so I was like fine, you know, that’s how he likes it.”
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On Co-Stars & Stardom: Deol contrasted this with his experience working with Suriya on Kanguva, noting that Suriya was much easier to interact with socially due to his familiarity with Mumbai.
The “Minister” Coincidence
Reflecting on his recent string of villainous roles in South Indian cinema, Deol joked about the uncanny political trend following his co-stars:
“The funniest thing is, every time I’ve worked with these actors, they’ve all become ministers. It’s just something very funny. Then I worked with Pawan Kalyan in Hari Hara Veera Mallu. I’m just joking.”
Bobby Deol’s Notable South Indian Lineup
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Jana Nayagan (Tamil): Plays antagonist Phoenix opposite Thalapathy Vijay, who serves as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.
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Daaku Maharaaj (Telugu): Plays warlord Balwant Singh Thakur opposite Nandamuri Balakrishna, a three-time consecutive MLA in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
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Hari Hara Veera Mallu (Telugu): Essays the role of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb opposite Pawan Kalyan, the current Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
