If you're talking about industry, I've never restricted myself to Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, or Kannada. Whichever the language is, from Swahili to Marathi or Bhojpuri to Bengali, I would be happy to do it.
I have sung songs in many Indian language be it Kannad, Tamil, Telgu, Marathi, Bhojpuri or Hindi and worked with all the good music directors.
I have never been someone who chooses a film according to the language. Since I am comfortable with Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam, the scope of the film is all that matters to me.
When I was offered 'Abhijaan,' I didn't know any Bengali. But Satyajit Ray insisted, saying my character spoke a mixture of Bhojpuri, Hindi, Urdu and Bengali. I agreed only because he had faith in me.
I have never left the Tamil film industry and have always maintained that I'm open to good projects. I have not restricted myself to any one industry.
Hindi has never been a trouble. In fact, Hindi is the only language I can speak and write apart from Malayalam and English.
I watch all kinds of Indian cinema. There are many good films in Bengali, Marathi and Malayalam.
I learnt to sing in Bengali, my mother tongue, then went on to sing in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati and every possible Indian language.
Somehow I feel South Indian actors are not that well known in the Hindi belt. Tamil and Telugu actors have an upper hand. But Kannada and Kerala are totally sidelined by Hindi filmgoers.
Even in India the Hindi film industry might be the best known but there are movies made in other regional languages in India, be it Tamil or Bengali. Those experiences too are different from the ones in Bombay.
Having done movies in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi, I have been accepted both in North and down South. I don't believe in divisions. I like to believe that I am working in the Indian film industry.
Apart from English, I speak my mother tongue Malayalam, as well as Tamil, Telugu, and a bit of Kannada and French.
We dabble in the regional market and have tapped into it with some amount of success. Be it Punjabi, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam or even Bhojpuri music, we have explored all possibilities.
I was eight years old when I was offered a film. And before I knew it, I was acting in Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu movies.
I am not really missing theatre as I get to act in films, that too in different languages, such as Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Marathi, my mother tongue.
We will go to every part of Tamil Nadu and tell the people that Hindi is coming and that it is like a thunder strike on the heads of Tamil and Dravidian people.... If Hindi were to become the official language of India, Hindi-speaking people will govern us. We will be treated like third rate citizens
I got a lot of exposure because of 'Eega,' as the film was released in Tamil, Hindi, and Malayalam.