Varun Dhawan Feels 'Only South Indians Taking Note' of His Action Talent: 'Citadel Was Wake-Up Call...'

The trailer of Citadel: Honey Bunny, the Indian chapter of Russo Brothers’ Citadel, was unveiled in Mumbai earlier today. It features Varun Dhawan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu engaging in some high-octane action sequences. This is also the first time that the duo is sharing screen space. Apart from their action prowess, their chemistry in the trailer has also grabbed attention. While this isn’t the first time that Varun is doing action onscreen, he’s exhilarated with the kind of stunts he got to perform for the first time.

With Citadel: Honey Bunny, Varun hopes for his career to take a new turn. Addressing the press, he said, “I had a great time and it was a wake-up call for me. Hopefully, a lot of people will take notice of this.” Up next, Varun will be seen donning the hat of an action star once again with Atlee’s Baby John, which is slated to release in December. The action sequences in it are, however, very different from those in Citadel: Honey Bunny.

Thanking the makers from the South Indian film industry for recognising his talent in the action space, Varun said, “Right now, I just feel that only the South Indians are taking note of me and giving me great opportunities in action. I started working with Raj and DK and Sam and next, I’m working with Atlee and Kirti. Janhvi is also South Indian. Hopefully, that will lead the way for other people in our industry to give me action films.”

At the event, Raj went on to laud both Varun and Samantha and said, “We didn’t have to do much when it came to style and action [in those sequences] or get any stunt double to replace him. We discovered Samantha’s prowess during The Family Man 2 and we realised she’s great at action. Together, they were suddenly a lethal combination.”

DK revealed that it was Varun who told the action director of Citadel: Honey Bunny to incorporate some MMA moves in the series. Reacting to it and drawing attention to Varun’s undying love for action, Samantha recalled, “In the last week of the shoot, I was on the floor, waiting for it to end. And Varun was telling the action choreographer that in the last 0.02 seconds, he should do a flip kick and he actually did it. And I was like, ‘Kill me already!'”

Citadel: Honey Bunny is set for a release on November 7 on Prime Video.