Actor Karthi said he was excited to showcase his work to a wider audience with Mani Ratnam's magnum opus Ponniyin Selvan-I.

Already an established name in Tamil cinema where he made his debut with hard-hitting drama Paruthiveeran in 2005, the actor has given hits such as Paiyaa, Naan Mahaan Alla, Siruthai and Kaithi over the years.

With Ratnam's period action film Ponniyin Selvan-I, based on author Kalki Krishnamurthy's 1955 Tamil novel of the same name, Karthi is being introduced to audiences outside of Tamil cinema.

“I'm only a part of a very large film. I have all these lovely people for support. Normally in my films, I'm the only person facing the pressure, probably me and my director.

But here we have more support to face this pressure. You feel all the more confident because you are getting launched by Mani sir in a film. So, I feel blessed that I'm getting introduced to a larger audience through this movie,” said the 45-year-old actor.

The film, which arrived in the theatres on Friday, tells the story of the early days of Arulmozhivarman, one of the most powerful kings in south India who went on to become the great Chola emperor Rajaraja Chola I in the 10th century.

Karthi essays the role of Vanthiyathevan, a brave and adventurous warrior, alongside Vikram starring as Aditha Karikalan, Jayam Ravi as Arulmozhivarman, Trisha Krishnan as Kundavai and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan as Nandini.

The actor, who started his film journey by assisting Ratnam on the cult hit Ayitha Ezhuthu (2004) and later starred as a lead in his 2017 movie Kaatru Veliyidai, hailed the director for revolutionising Indian cinema with his work. “He's been a cult director right from the start. He just turned the cinema on its head.”

“As a filmmaker, Mani sir understands people and emotions — he is so sensitive. He trained audiences to be more sensible and artistic,” added Karthi.

Ponniyin Selvan-I is also special for Karthi as it is his first period movie. “As actors, you're trying to get into a different person’s shoes every time. But when you do a period film, you're getting into another world. To me, it is such a rich world and you want to go and experience that world. The added benefit is that you get to be in a different mindset, wear costumes and do various things like horse riding,” he said.