The actor was aboard a US ship when the earthquake struck last week

On Wednesday, when a devastating earthquake stuck Indonesia and an urgent tsunami warning was issued in the coastal districts of southern India, Kamal Haasan was aboard the super-luxurious American navy ship USS Carl Vinson as a guest of the US government.

Haasan is the first Indian actor to be invited on board an American ship as a special friend of the country."It was just good timing," says Kamal Haasan.

"There I was, on the American carrier in the Bay Of Bengal, 200 miles off the coast of Chennai, oblivious to the earthquake and the tsunami warning..."

Apparently, Haasan's American hosts made sure that the tsunami warnings didn't reach his ears. Though Haasan is not talking about it, his close ties with the US have a lot to do with his latest film Vishwaroop, which addresses global peace and intelligence. Haasan shot a major part of the film in the US and has also done the film's special effects in the country.

During Vishwaroop's post-production in Los Angeles, Haasan was inundated with requests from top studios for a screening of the film.

Haasan says, "I haven't gone out of my way to build a rapport with the US. They often make appalling films like The Hunger Games, and then talk about championing aesthetic causes. I didn't flatter anybody's ego."