Vijay Deverakonda: I didn’t find Arjun Reddy misogynistic or anti-feminist

Mumbai (Maharashtra): Vijay Deverakonda became a household name with his very famous role Arjun Reddy. Arjun Reddy not only wooed the audience in the South but also became a cult classic in the North as well. So much so that it was later remade in Hindi as Kabir Singh. But with adoration and love, the film also became the subject of controversy for Arjun’s abusive nature. The character was shown to slap his girlfriend, Preeti in one of the scenes and that raised questions about whether domestic violence is glorified in the movie.

During his latest stint on Koffee With Karan 7, the actor was asked about his take on Arjun Reddy being called an anti-feminist film. “Did you amount Arjun Reddy to intense love or did you feel that this is something that could offend women when they saw it?” Karan asked. The actor stated that as an actor, his job is to empathize with the actor and not judge him. He said, “If I am judging a character, I can’t play him. Any role that is brought to me, I try and empathize with him and if I can, I take that role. If something about it is very conflicting and don’t understand it or I don’t agree with it, I don’t take it up.”

He added, “So if I did Arjun Reddy then I empathized with him. I understood why he behaved the way he did and the relationship he had with Preeti. I didn’t find him misogynistic or anti-feminist or something. It seemed like two people who had a very unique relationship. That was their relationship and for them, it was love.”

Karan further questioned, “But is it okay for Arjun Reddy to raise her hand on her?” Vijay answered, “I’m no one to say if it is right or wrong but they two did it and they had a happy ever after life. But I’m not saying nobody should have a problem with it. I understand that you disagree with it and I respect that you don’t like it.”

On whether Vijay is Arjun in real life, the actor revealed that he can never be Arjun in real life. If it reaches a point where I feel such anger towards a woman, I will walk out. It’ll never reach a point where it gets abusive in any nature.”