'Mister' star Varun Tej in this exclusive interview to IndiaGlitz talks about why he likes the comic timing of Pawan Kalyan and Chiranjeevi, whether he is following in the footsteps of his 'babai', why he worked with Sreenu Vaitla, whether his tallness is a problem, and more.

Between Sreenu Vaitla and the story, which factor made you go for 'Mister' more?

Fortunately, I have got to work with sensible directors right from the beginning. Story is the primary factor any day. If I believe that a particular director would do justice to it, I will accept an offer. 'Mister' is an honest script. There is good comedy, which I hadn't done before. And it fulfills my desire to do a proper love story.

Vaitla has said that your comic timing is impressive in 'Mister'. What went into bringing that out from you?

It's tough to do comedy. After 'Mister', my inhibitions with respect to comedy have come down. It was my director who helped me with every expression. He showed me by enacting it.

I have always looked up to Babai (Pawan Kalyan) and Pedananna (Chiranjeevi) for their comic timing and mannerisms. In Babai's movies, there is no separate comedy track and he is very natural at comedy. He can be funny just by singing a song. As for Pedananna, his acting in films like 'Chantabbai' and 'Gharana Mogudu' is an inspiration to me. I used to watch them a lot.

Do you tend to imitate them without your knowledge?

Vaitla garu would tell me I did it like Babai at times. Sekhar Kammula garu too feels that at times. But I don't imitate Babai consciously.

Srikanth Addala, Krish, Puri Jagannadh, Sekhar Kammula and Sreenu Vaitla. All special names you have got to work with so early in your career. What do you think has drawn them to you?

It would be more apt to ask them. Each one tells me a different reason why they chose me. Srikanth Addala garu felt that my looks suited a film like 'Mukunda' more. Krish garu told me I come across as an old-time face and that's why he chose me for the period film 'Kanche'. Puri garu has his own reasons.

Vaitla has had a slew of flops. You too need a hit. Didn't you feel it risky to work with him at this junction of your career?

A lot of people have asked me this question. Sreenu Vaitla garu's track record speaks for itself.

Lavanya Tripathi has said that she was scared because you are too tall. What do your female co-stars tell you about your height?

My height is not a big deal. Lavanya was only concerned about how we might look on the screen. The first thing we did after shooting for the first shot was to rush to the monitor and see how we looked.

My directors feel that, because of my height, I look better in action sequences.

Like your Babai, you too are doing soft roles at the start. Are you planning to move on to mass entertainers later?

I am not consciously following him. In the early years, Babai did boy-next-door characters and I too am doing such characters because I feel it's the right thing to do. His films like 'Tammudu', 'Toli Prema' and 'Suswagatham' didn't present him in larger-than-life roles. They were relatable characters.

Are you feeling any pressure because you hail from a family of 'Mega' dancers?

That pressure was there before the release of my first film. But now public understand my capabilities. They can't expect me to dance like Charan anna, Bunny and Tarak.

All that I look for is that my dance is not bad.

You have said that it's Charan who you look up to among the younger lot. Why so?

I am more close to him and feel more at home while I am with him. He is a responsible son who has successfully taken the legacy of Chiranjeevi garu forward. He advises me not to taken a beaten commercial track. I take his words seriously.

When your sister's (Niharika) first movie flopped, what did you tell her?

Her first movie was dad's initiative. We watched 'Oka Manasu' together. She is a genuine performer who doesn't fake it. I had no clue about the film until I watched it. She was happy with her journey. For that matter, my debut film too didn't do well. It was my choice. Her debut was her's. Some times our choices go right, some times they go wrong. We are responsible for our decisions.

I told her that I will listen to her offers from next time. I told her to be strong, but she doesn't need to be told that. She is actually stronger than me.

Like your sister, are you going to debut in Tamil?

I am not thinking about that. I am very happy now. But if something really exciting comes, yes.

When your father attacked Ram Gopal Varma as 'Akkupakshi', it resulted in a controversy. What's your taken on the affair?

My take is that, irrespective of who he spoke about, it's all about his feelings as a brother. It was an outburst against someone who was pointing fingers at his brother. Everyone has the right to speech and the other person too should respect this.

My father is genuine and frank. I don't have to say that because everybody knows it. If a son is attacked, his father will react to it. Likewise, if a younger brother is attacked, the elder brother will react to it.

We are one family. I told my dad that he did a good job.

The other day, some fans of Pawan Kalyan were apparently unhappy because they felt you didn't invoke Babai's name during the 'Mister' pre-release event.

Nobody has to ask me to do that. I will talk about him 100 per cent. Why wouldn't I?

It was a film event and I was supposed to promote my film. That's why I would rather