Kushi, in most Indian languages, means happiness. And love is a universal language. Marrying these two semantic ideas is Kushi. The Telugu language film, releasing in cinemas on September 1, stars heartthrobs Vijay Deverakonda and Samantha Ruth Prabhu, and shows a couple fighting religious differences and familial chasms to get married, only for the relationship to turn sour soon afterwards, a series of seemingly innocuous incidents quickly piling up to destroy the bond.

The trailer of the film, which is directed by Shiva Nirvana, was launched at a grand event at Park Hyatt in Hyderabad last week, with the larger-than-life but amiable presence of Viay Deverakonda — the charismatic star who has films like Arjun Reddy, Geeta Govindham, Pelli Choopulu and Mahanati to his name, among others — looming large and often compensating for the no-show from co-star Samantha at the launch. Present at the launch, The Telegraph took notes of ‘The Deverakonda Show’.

‘A cute, important film’

In keeping with the playing out of the trailer of Kushi in five languages (Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam), Vijay took to the stage to welcome those present in as many languages, effortlessly switching from one to the other with a generous dose of English thrown in, of course.

Looking dapper in a navy blue ethnic ensemble and sporting a moustache, the 34-year-old actor said: “Kushi is an amazing film; it’s a story that I felt was important to be a part of. It’s a cute, important film. It’s a film that people from across the country will relate to because it’s a story of our relationships, our marriages, and the kind of families we live in. The entire process of making this film has been so much fun.”

The trailer of Kushi, all five times over, gave everyone present the vibe of Mani Ratnam’s epical romance Alai Payuthey, later remade in Hindi as Saathiya. While Vijay admitted that the initial feel of Kushi will give one the feel of Mani Ratnam’s films, he believed that the film had the merit to stand on its own. “We have all anyway been Mani sir’s fans for life,” said the actor with a smile.

Discovering Samantha

Even before working with Samantha, she was someone who he watched and had great admiration for, said Vijay. “One can have a crush on a star on screen, but when I worked with her personally, I saw how hard she worked on each and every scene. It’s sad to promote a love story all by myself. But she needs time (Samantha is on a break because of health complications) and we all understand that and I am doing the job for her,” said Vijay.

Vijay’s bond with Samantha has been evident for a while now, corroborated by behind-the-scenes footage from the Kashmir sets of Kushi where the two leaned on each other, both as friends and co-actors. On being asked why he stood behind Samantha when she wasn’t around to shoot portions of the film owing to reasons both medical (she has a condition called myositis) and personal (her messy divorce from actor Naga Chaitanya), Vijay reacted with: “There was no other option... it wasn’t anything great or benevolent on our part. We were okay to wait. For us, she matters, her health matters and we all knew how much she contributed to this film.”

His response was met with thunderous applause, especially when he said that he would have waited for his co-star even longer if required, even making light of his ‘unemployment status’ then: “I thought that since I am not shooting, let me open an idli bandi or tiffin centre on the Vijayawada highway and call it ‘Samantha Idli Stall’!”

'I have grown more and more comfortable with the idea of marriage. It’s something that I have to do soon'

Love, actually?

Promoting a love story will automatically segue into talk about Vijay’s relationship status, which has been the cause of curiosity for many years. When asked if he had experienced the kind of love shown in Kushi, the usually reticent actor said: “I have experienced all kinds of love... the Arjun Reddy kind (obsessive and often violent), the Kushi kind of love (romance degenerating into disinterest), but I have not experienced the Geetha Govindam kind of love (persuasive, pure and all-powerful) till now.” Incidentally, Geetha Govindam, which starred Rashmika Mandanna as Geetha to Vijay’s Govindam, turned five on August 15.

‘I am no longer scared of marriage’

A mention of Rashmika Mandanna, who Vijay has been linked to for quite some time, with neither actor confirming or denying the relationship and Kushi’s theme of marriage, is fertile and compelling ground to grill the actor about his own marriage plans. Surprisingly, Vijay was quite open about his ideas regarding marriage, much more than he has been in the past.

“It’s something that I have to do soon,” said the handsome heartthrob with a smile. Even as that was met with heartening applause, Vijay, considered one of the most eligible bachelors in the Indian film industry, continued: “I have grown more and more comfortable with the idea of marriage.”

While outlining the essentials of a good marriage — “love, understanding and the tenacity and patience to weather every storm together” — Vijay said: “Even till some time ago, my friends and family couldn’t even mention the word ‘marriage’ in front of me... I would get very agitated. But now I am quite easy with it, I am even having conversations about it.”

Vijay Deverakonda and Samantha Ruth Prabhu in 'Kushi', releasing in cinemas on September 1

Vijay: a feminist?

A cheeky line at the end of the Kushi trailer has Vijay’s Viplov trying to assure a co-actor that he is a ‘feminist’. Was that an organic part of the film or a message in response to the criticism he received for his portrayal of toxic masculinity in Arjun Reddy? Vijay’s retort: “I have been called ‘misogynist’ for a very long time now. It’s become tiring. But those who know me, know better,” laughed off the actor.

Dealing with Liger’s failure

Vijay’s much-touted Bollywood debut — action film Liger co-starring Ananya Panday, and produced by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions — tanked on release last year, being met with all-around criticism and poor box office. Vijay confessed that the disastrous response that Liger met with did throw him off, but that hits and flops are a part of the movie business. “I had a failure like Liger, but I have also had many hits before it and many flops too... and I will continue to have both hits and flops in the future.”

He did say that the failure of Liger hurt, but he has brushed it aside and risen. “I am not scared of failure. My failures hurt but I always get back up. The ambition is to go on, to run... and to run fast.”