Sathyaraj Admits He Felt His Role In Chennai Express Wasn't Great; 'I Did The Film Because I Like SRK'

Before Sathyaraj became a household name with his portrayal of Katappa in SS Rajamouli's epic Baahubali, the actor starred in Shah Rukh Khan-Deepika Padukone's 2013 film Chennai Express. The Rohit Shetty directorial marked Sathyaraj's debut in Bollywood.

He essayed the role of Deepika's father Durgesh Azhagusundaram who is also a powerful headman of a local mafia in the film. Sathyaraj in his recent interaction with a leading tabloid made a candid confession about this film.

The veteran actor admitted that he did Chennai Express only for Shah Rukh Khan even after knowing that his role wasn't great.

Sathyaraj told ETimes, "When the makers approached me for Chennai Express, I heard the story and I felt that it was not that great a role for me. I conveyed this to the director (Rohit Shetty) and also to Shah Rukh Khan, but I eventually did the film, because I like Shah Rukh very much. I like SRK's acting a lot. His films, like 'DDLJ' and several others, did extremely well."

Chennai Express which released in 2013, was a massive hit at the box office, and minted a lifetime collection of Rs 227.13 Crore.

In the same interview, Sathyaraj was also asked about how his life has changed post doing the massive success of SS Rajamouli's Baahubali franchise. To this he replied, "The fame never got to my head. I truly believe that we are just part of a profession, like everyone. Just like a driver is a driver, an actor is an actor. That's all! There's nothing more than that. We are popular because our profession projects us onto people's screens. I don't think we are great people," adding that he works for cinema.

Sathyaraj is currently awaiting the release of his upcoming film Veetla Vishesham. The film is the Hindi remake of Ayushmann Khurrana's Badhaai Ho.