"'Vishwaroopam' product of sincere hard work"

Chennai: Veteran Telugu director K. Vishwanath can't stop raving about Kamal Haasan ever since he watched 'Vishwaroopam'. He feels all the struggle over the film was really worth it.

"He (Kamal) is a multi-faceted artiste and such people are a rarity in our industry. 'Vishwaroopam' is a product of sincere hard work, research and dedication. The film speaks for itself and no wonder people have embraced it," Vishwanath told IANS.

Written, produced and directed by Kamal, Rs.95 crore 'Vishwaroopam' managed to mint Rs.5.81 crore on the opening day of release in Tamil Nadu. It released in over 600 screens.

"From the reception of the film, all that I can say is that his struggles have paid off and I'm extremely happy about it", he added.

The veteran has directed Kamal in three Telugu films - 'Swati Mutyam', 'Saagara Sangamam' and 'Subha Sankalpam'.

"He (Kamal) made me an actor. I still remember how adamant he was that I should act in 'Subha Sankalpam'. At times I feel he is too knowledgeable and that's why he wants to do everything single-handedly," he said.

'Vishwaroopam', the espionage thriller was originally scheduled to release in Tamil and Telugu on January 25, but a day before the screening the Tamil Nadu government imposed a two-week ban on the film after some Muslim groups complained that some scenes portrayed the community in a bad light.

It was released in Tamil on February 7 after the ban was removed.

However, its Hindi version, 'Vishwaroop', released as per schedule on February 1.