Actor Arun Vijay is currently learning martial arts for his role in Boxer from Johnny Tri-Nguyen, who played the villain in Suriya-starrer 7aum Arivu and Atharvaa’s Irumbu Kuthirai.
The actor recently flew to Veitnam to train at the Lien Phong Training Center. Tri-Nguyen is an actor, stunt master and martial arts choreographer based in Veitnam.
Arun Vijay shared a photo with him on Twitter.
With the Master himself! #liênphong #MixedMartialArts #Vietnam #7amArivu #johnnytrínguyễn pic.twitter.com/QWVLTxgH7F
— ArunVijay (@arunvijayno1) May 21, 2019
The movie directed by Vivek, a former associate of Bala, was announced in November last year. In February, Rithika Singh came on board and it was reported that she plays a sports journalist. She is a trained sportsperson, and has previously played a boxer in her first film Irudhi Suttru, and a journalist in Aandavan Kattalai. Speaking to ToI, the director said that her role will be a realistic one. “Ritika plays a sports journalist who aspires to become a boxer. I wanted someone who knows the sport and can act well. After she signed up, I added several layers to her character based on her real-life skills.”
Both freestyle boxing and martial arts will feature in Boxer. Stunt choreographer Peter Hein put Arun Vijay in touch with some of the best trainers, the actor said in a statement earlier. “It has been my dream to do a sports-based film and I am completely charged up. The script is a mix of emotional and inspiring elements that instantly appealed to me. Conventional sports-based films have had protagonists who struggle initially only to emerge victorious at the end. This film, however, has done away with the underdog story. Instead, the hero is a top league boxer who has to confront his internal problems to move forward,” he said.
The film has music by Leon James, and cinematography by Markus A Lujungbern. V Mathiyalagan of Etcectra Entertainment is producing the movie. Shoot is likely to begin from June after Arun Vijay completes training.
Image Courtesy: Arun Vijay Twitter
