‘Street Fighter’: Vidyut Jammwal on embodying a video game character in his Hollywood debut

Vidyut Jammwal is made for action. When he first appeared in a prominent role of an antagonist opposite John Abraham in the stylistic thriller, Force, Vidyut brought his stormy energy to the brawls, commanding his toned body to jump into cleaner, smoother moves. He solidified his stance as the action hero with the three Commando films, where he performed his own stunts with an intensive rigour. Perhaps that’s what led the makers of Street Fighterto Vidyut as he makes his Hollywood debut with the video game adaptation.

“They were looking for an action star from India and I got a call from director Kitao Sakurai. Then one call led to another which led to a small audition and I was cast,” Vidyut tells The Hindu, reflecting on his excitement upon receiving the call. “I found it incredible that they found me and prayed that it would work out. The journey was long, difficult, harsh and seemed impossible but everything fell in place in the end.”

Street Fighter brings much-loved characters that first appeared in the 1987 fighting video game, where rival martial artists Ryu (Andrew Koji) and Ken Masters (Noah Centineo) take part in the world warrior tournament. They are joined by other fighters, including, the spiritual yoga master, Dhalsim, played by Vidyut, who possesses abilities to stretch his body and conjure fire. The game offers a stunning adrenaline as these distinguished fighters combat to defeat each other using their powers. Vidyut had not played the game before — the actor is not invested as much in gaming. “I don’t play games, I do sports. I am an athlete,” he smiles

That changed when he started work on the film as he recalls playing the game almost everyday while also remarking that “Street Fighter is not an easy game to play”. Interestingly enough, his favourite character to main is not Dhalsim, and the actor enjoys playing with Guile and Balrog. “I don’t like Dhalsim, because it is difficult to play with him. There are so many attachments to him. But people who love Street Fighter, they enjoy playing Dhalsim,” Vidyut says.

Playing the Street Fighter games was part of his preparation for the role. “I was told to look at every character and how they fight. Along with that, I needed to also know all the superpowers that different characters posses,” he says, adding that the process of understanding a video game character was entirely different than what he had done before. “I had to be that character from the game and make him look real in the way I move and fight. It was a thin line. But I was in good hands as the team was well prepared to make that transition look smooth,” says the actor.

The transition is equally important for Vidyut as he steps into Hollywood with Street Fighter. For him, what was more rewarding was working with seasoned performers like Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. Vidyut recalls the time before he was leaving to shoot the film when his friends and acquaintances came up to him with some requests. “Everyone wanted me to have a photo with the stars, either with Jason Momoa or most of the boys, who wanted one with Roman. I fulfilled all of their requests,” Vidyut smiles.

Interestingly, Cody Rhodes, who is a popular wrestler at World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), invited Vidyut to the flagship event, Wrestlemania 42 where Rhodes was competing for the WWE championship. “The fact that Cody invited me for his match is an unmatched experience. And both him and Roman won when I went to watch. It was a double treat for me,” he says. When asked if he used to watch WWE as a child, Vidyut says plainly, “No. I used to wrestle as a child.”

The actor has been consistently training in the martial arts since his childhood. “I used to enjoy it a lot. Just like somebody picks up football or cricket, I picked up martial arts and continued doing it,” he says, adding that he never let it go from his life. “I meet many people who started doing something at a young age and then stopped it. But I am someone who kept at it. If youngsters are doing something new, they should keep doing it,” he opines.

Vidyut feels that the impact of martial arts is seen in everything that he does, including acting. “Martial arts has aided me in how I conduct myself and has also imparted values of respect and dignity,” he says. “If you spend time doing any art form or sports, whether it is cookery, sketching, horse riding, then you are left with a lot of possibilities. An artist will always have something that others will not posses,” he says.

Street Fighter will be released in theatres on October 16