Chennai, Nov 16 (IANS): Popular Tamil TV actor Vijay Adhiraj, who has been in the industry for over two decades, has turned director with upcoming Tamil entertainer "Puthagam". He says he is keen on making films suitable for family viewing.

"'Puthagam' can be tagged as a complete family entertainer, and the reason I call it the same is because I always wanted to make films that I can watch with my entire family," Vijay told IANS.

The film, which is about the repercussions of a crime gone wrong, revolves around three key characters staying in a mansion.

Puthagam, which means book in English, is one of the key characters in the film.

"While one aspect of the film is about three key characters in a mansion, the other one is about a book, which plays a pivotal role in the movie," added Vijay.

Vijay says he was on a high as a television actor, and since acting on the small screen was getting monotonous, he finally decided to wield the megaphone.

"I've enjoyed my time as an actor, but felt work was becoming repetitive. Direction was always part of my life, but I waited for the right moment," he added.

The right moment came in his life in the form of producers V. Ramdoss and S. Manjula, who after reading the script, agreed to work with Vijay.

What was your biggest challenge as a director?

"My biggest challenge was to control myself from giving acting instructions to my co-stars in the film. Having worked as an actor on television for 20 years, I tend to make people act the way I want. But I controlled myself from doing so and allowed the actors to perform in their own comfort zone on sets," Vijay added.

He also feels that his years of experience will help him as an actor, but not others.

"Acting is about expressing emotions, which varies from one person to other. If I were to force my co-stars to act the way I want, then I'll be seeing myself in the output, not them," he said.

The film, which was shot over 60 days in Chennai, features Satya and Rakul Preet Singh in the lead roles. It also includes other actors like Jagapathi Babu, Sanjay Bharati, Vignesh, Rachana Maurya, Crazy Mohan, Manobala, Santhanabharathi, Thalaivasal Vijay, Delhi Ganesh and Uma Padmanabhan.

James Vasanthan has composed the music for the film, which is getting ready for a Christmas release.