Jason Sanjay on how he handles ‘outside narrative’ about dad Vijay: ‘I have certain limitations’

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and superstar C Joseph Vijay ’s son, Jason Sanjay, will soon debut as a filmmaker in Kollywood. His film, Sigma, will hit screens on October 2. While promoting the film, he spoke about navigating the discourse surrounding his father’s personal and political life. He also mentioned how he has ‘certain limitations’ now because his father is the CM.

On Galatta Plus, Jason was asked how he deals with the chatter around Vijay, be it his films, politics, or anything else. He said, “I just try to stay away from it as much as I can. Because there’s always gonna be an outside narrative. I think because of where my father is right now in his life, I just need to make sure I safeguard the reputation of the family. I want to make sure I’m not doing anything in an inconsiderate manner which may offend anyone. Because my father is the CM of the state. It’s not in terms of my work, but in my personal life. I do have certain limitations. As long as there’s no collateral damage. I just need to trust my intuition and hope for the best.”

When asked if it feels like too much pressure, he smiled and agreed that he feels that way ‘sometimes’. Jason was also asked if he thinks about how people view him, given that he’s Vijay’s son. He replied, “I think about it all the time, I can’t deny that. I think the timing of everything has worked out interestingly. Obviously, the inbuilt legacy of my family is going to continue forever. Also, the political scenario and changes that have taken place of late. On the other hand, I’m doing my own film and trying to make my mark in the industry and deliver my vision. It’s going to be in the subconscious that so-and-so has directed the film or whatever. But five minutes in, people are gonna watch it as just a film.”

Jason hopes that whatever praise or criticism comes his way after Sigma’s release, the film will speak to who he is. He also spoke about ‘concentrating on building (his) own identity’ after the film’s release.

Sigma is directed by Jason and produced by Lyca Productions. Starring Sundeep Kishan and Faria Abdullah in the lead roles, it was scheduled for release in July. However, its release was postponed when Vijay’s Jana Nayagan finally received CBFC certification after months of delay and hit screens. Jason’s debut is a heist film, and it remains to be seen how it fares.

Despite having a Master's degree in Journalism and over a decade of experience in print and digital media as a field reporter and sub-editor at organisations such as The Times of India and Reader's Digest, Neeshita Nyayapati remains a movie buff first and a Chief Content Producer second. She fell in love with movies in childhood and believes nothing matches the magic of watching a good film that moves you with a warm tub of popcorn in hand. Her love for writing about cinema follows that. Come Friday, you'll find her at her happy place, the movies, catching the latest rom-com or masala offering, for reviews or otherwise. As for the rest of the week, she's here reporting the juiciest news in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi or bringing out the best of celebs in interviews.