Mumbai, Feb 1 (IANS) Celebrated for his striking screen presence and strong acting skills, filmmaker-actor Prithviraj Sukumaran says he never thought of himself as a very good-looking guy and adds that he found his Hindi debut film Aiyya refreshing because it focused on his looks.

“I've never thought of myself as a very good looking guy ever. And also the kind of cinema that I do, I don't end up doing a lot of films where it's about my looks and all that which is what was very refreshing for me about my first film,” Prithviraj told IANS.

“I did a film called ‘Aiyya’, where the whole film was about me neck downwards, that was very refreshing for me because I didn't think that I could be shot like that objectively,” he added.

The actor agrees that in ‘Aiyya’, which also features Rani Mukerji and released in 2012, the spotlight was on his looks.

“Maybe that was the only film where the film was largely about my looks and all that. Other than that, even the kind of films I do are not about me looking good.”

He added: “So, I've not been constantly fed with the thought that I'm this really good looking man and all that. If women do find me attractive, I'm flattered. But I'd much rather that they find my work attractive.”

Released in 2012, “Aiyya” told the story of an eccentric woman, Meenakshi, who meets a Tamil artist named Surya and is instantly attracted to him.

Prithviraj is now gearing up for the release of his action thriller directorial “L2: Empuraan”. It is the second instalment in a planned trilogy, following the 2019 film Lucifer. The film was jointly produced by Lyca Productions and Aashirvad Cinemas.

It stars Mohanlal alongside Prithviraj, Indrajith Sukumaran, Tovino Thomas, Manju Warrier, Saniya Iyappan, Saikumar, Baiju Santhosh, Fazil and Sachin Khedekar reprising their roles from the original.

“L2: Empuraan” will be released on March 27.