I watch football matches more than movies: Arya

Fitness is something that’s part of every actor’s daily routine. They know how important it is to stay in shape and therefore, hit the gym often and work out for long hours. Meanwhile, some of them choose to sweat it out outdoors and take up martial arts, cycling and other sporting activities also. Arya is one among them. As much as he’s keen about films, he’s an avid cyclist as well and plays cricket and football like seasoned players. No wonder he’s been announced as the ambassador of Chennai Singhams, the city side in the second season of Premier Futsal.

Talking about his love for football, he says, “That’s what I grew up playing. Earlier, I had a ligament tear playing football. I got it fixed just to play football again. Then, I tore the ligament on the other leg as well. But that’s no deterrent for me to stop playing football. I watch more number of football matches than movies. I follow all the football leagues.” So, how excited is he about the upcoming futsal league? “Well, the organisers have promised me that they would let me play with Ronaldinho,” he laughs.

Cycling, of course, is another sporting activity that he actively takes part in. He has already been part of several cycling events, including a few international ones. Recently, he competed in LEL 2017 (London Edinburgh London 2017) cycling challenge race, one of

Britain

’s toughest cycling challenges. “It was something that really tested my endurance. I had to cycle more than 1,000km in four days. And I got to sleep for only three or four hours during the entire course of the race. Such a race also tests one’s mental strength. You start thinking of quitting at many points as you have to overcome different climatic conditions, terrains, etc. Somehow, I managed to complete the race successfully,” says Arya with a sense of pride and adds that he cycles around 300km every week.

Moving on to films, ask him about Ameer’s Santhana Devan, the film he’s doing with his brother, Sathya, and he replies, “I am quite excited about it as this is the first film we’re acting together. And it is going to be a crucial film in my career. Half of the shoot is done. It has been mostly shot in and around Madurai as jallikattu is the subject of the film.”

Meanwhile, the actor in him is testing waters in other industries as well. Now, he’s debuting in Kannada. “I am happy that I am not stuck with one industry. You get to know a new language, new people and they get to know you. If you want to grow in any field, you need to widen your range,” he says.

On the other hand, the number of films he signs in Tamil is lesser now. Has he become choosy? “Not really. It’s just that the films that I do are taking a bit longer to complete. Either the pre-production takes a long time or the shooting goes on for a longer period. That’s all. And the films that I am part of, like Santhana Devan and Sangamithra, are big projects and they will obviously take time,” he clarifies. About his last film Kadamban, which didn’t do well, he says, “Some films do well, some others don’t. If your previous film does well, it’s easier to market the next one. And that’s it.”