Arnold Schwarzenegger had 20-inch biceps when he did his first film; I had 18 and half inches when I did 'Saala Khadoos': R Madhavan

Mumbai: Actor R Madhavan went to the US and worked out extensively to prepare for his role in the forthcoming film ‘Saala Khadoos’. He says he even built biceps which came close to the biceps' size of Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"I learned different ways of working out. I learned a lot about my body. Let me just say that Arnold Schwarzenegger had 20-inch biceps when he did his first film, and when I did 'Saala Khadoos', being a vegetarian I managed 18 and half inches," said Madhavan.

"I had reduced for 'Tanu Weds Manu' but this (workout) was an exciting thing for me." he added.

Asked why he went to the US for training? he replied: "Because had I been here, I would've just eaten dahi chawal and puri bhaji. I went there because you need to put yourself into a mental state before you get the physical state right. I first learned boxing when I went there."

"But then I realised that in the film, I'm not doing boxing and that I have to do more training so I started training. And that's when I realized that if you have to do boxing for even 40 seconds, how much preparation - strength, stamina and energy - you need," said the actor, who plays a boxing coach in the forthcoming film.