Quotes from Arvind Swami

I'm in this profession because of Mani Ratnam. He was the one who brought me here. He taught me everything. And he inspired me to make a comeback.

I was very young when I made my debut, I was almost like a kid getting that kind of success and adulation which was difficult to cope.

I have always tried to experiment with roles.

I may not write poetry in Telugu but I need to get the nuances right.

I was born and raised up in a small farm.

My daughter criticizes me constructively. She gives me good and honest feedback.

When we watch 'Scarface' or 'The Godfather', we look at the characters for what they are and the story through them.

I have plans of becoming a director soon. I just finished my script. I don't know when I'll direct the film. It is ready and has reached its third draft.

I can't watch formulaic films and hence, won't write or make one such film.

By nature, I am very curious. I don't think it's fair for anybody to keep your ideas bottled up out of fear. I take a lot of inputs from others. Whether I use them or not is a different issue.

For me, whatever I do, I believe, I must do it seriously and invest a lot of time to understand and learn.

When I joined films, I was clueless about the industry and had no aspirations to be an actor.

At 29, I quit films. A lot of things happened. I had personal issues, injured my spine, and felt paralysed for a while. I never thought of coming back. Personally, it was traumatic. I just took life as it came and dealt with it in a positive manner.

I just want to be myself. I want to act in films and not expect any special treatment. I carry my own bags on sets, I don't have assistants around me.

For me, most things are mental. You do better if you analyse and address the issue mentally.

I now have the experience of life and all I've seen. I came in when I was in my twenties and I wasn't prepared to be an actor. Then there was my sabbatical, my accident and I was single-parenting my kids. Your mind expands, you become mature and you feel liberated. I don't care about being conventional. I want to be daring.

I know I'm not a good actor; I just don't have that natural ability to perform when someone narrates a scene. What I lack in talent I make up with my brain.

I had no intention of being an actor in the first place. But it all started when I was 20, and by the time I was 28, it was stifling me.

Stardom doesn't appeal to me in anyway. Of course, I want people to like my work, but in my mind I've consciously created a line where I don't think of myself as a big star.

I have nurtured my kids by myself. I am happy that I invested those 10 years in bringing up my kids.

I have done my fair share of good roles in unsuccessful films. There's no point in that.

I don't expect people to know my name. I don't get offended if people don't know me.

While bringing up my kids I had to strike a balance between being strict and being able to maintain my cool.

I never feel proud of my work and say that this is my biggest achievement.