Mathi
, who is producing
Arun Vijay’s
Boxer
, will be playing the antagonist in the film! This is his second film – he has already started shooting for choreographer Bobby Antony’s debut directorial. He trained in his home during the lockdown to get in shape, and also took acting classes online. Boxer’s director Vivek roped him in when he walked in during a photoshoot. The team was in talks with Anurag Kashyap earlier to play this character.
Mathi says, “We’d already spoken to Anurag Kashyap for the role, and were ready to make the announcements. But there were certain logistical issues. Arun Vijay has three looks in the film, and he had bulked up for one of them. He shot that portions and then went on to complete Mafia. He also shot for his other films. Now, he will require at least 60 days to bulk up and look like an MMA boxer, and then has to reduce weight again. We can’t ask Anurag to wait for that long. So, Vivek asked me to do that role. We spoke to Arun, and he was also excited. I don’t have to fight Arun’s character in the film. I play his manager, who has to keep track of all his fighting assignments for the contract period, but when he decides to do something on his own, I turn against him. I’ve already shot for a day for Bobby’s film before lockdown, and I’m looking forward to work on these two films now.”
The film, which stars Rithika Singh in the lead, also has Sanjjanaa Galrani as part of the cast. While Leon James is composing the music, Marcus is handling the cinematography.