Stunts, sweat and gears

Power TRIP: Vijay and Ramya in Ullasa

Vijay, a six-time national motocross champ, is performing death-defying stunts to woo Ramya in Ullasa. What made him switch tracks from racing to acting?

A six-time national motocross champion is trying his hand at a new skill acting. C Vijay Kumar (25) will star with Ramya in Ullasa, an action-packed Kannada film. The third and final schedule of the shooting will be wrapped up this month.u00a0

Vijay, a young businessman with a passion for power bikes, performs breath-taking stunts on imported bikes in the film.u00a0u00a0

"I never dreamt that I would act in a film," said Vijay. "My life revolves around bikes and racing. I never thought my passion for bikes would lead me to films."

Vijay, who has won the MRF national motocross championship between 2000 and 2006, plays a college student in Ullasa. In order to woo Ramya, he performs daring bike stunts like driving over a passing train and riding a bike on a moving train.u00a0 He performs front and rear tyre wheelies. He rides a Suzuki Hayabusa and a Suzuki Intruder in the film.u00a0u00a0

It was his mastery over bikes that fetched him the role. The producers of Ullasa were so impressed with his biking skills that they postponed their venture for a year so that Vijay could train as an actor.u00a0

"He is a very special performer," says producer Anand. "Ours is an action film and Vijay is the perfect fit."

Vijay, who practices on his bike for nearly six hours a day on his personal racing track at Vidyaranyapura, took classes in acting, dancing and body building. Producers have been queuing up at his door with offers but the biker boy is in no rush to grab film offers. "I am waiting for the release of Ullasa before accepting any other film."