What
is Paiyaa all about?
Paiyaa is a simple romantic action film. It is a very
plain love story and is not too deep. Although the
romance is basic, it is presented very well. Since
it is a road film, there is only journey in it. And
the story has been narrated in a visual and musical
manner. It is a pleasant neat film that can be enjoyed
by youngsters and by the family audience alike. It
is exciting for me because after Paruthi Veeran and
Aayirathil Oruvan, I feature as myself in Paiyaa without
black make-up and dirty clothes. I have come in clean
costumes in a presentable fashion. This is the first
such time for me and I am being re-introduced as a
new face in Paiyaa.
Experience
with Lingusamy?
My first directors are task
masters. They were very clear about what they
wanted and how I should perform. Selva is a
bit different in the sense that he gives you
a little maneuverability to perform and improvise
the portrayal.
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My first directors
are task masters
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Lingusamy lets you perform and then corrects. He does
not come with fixed notion to the sets and any kind
of inputs are welcome. He gives a lot of freedom to
work on your role. It was a good learning experience
for me. I have implemented many things that I have learnt.
And secondly in Paiyaa, it is not a character unknown
to me. I enjoyed working with Lingusamy and there were
many useful interactions to hone every scene. He has
taught me the difference between being a star and a
hero. When my friends (especially Trisha) came to know
that I am going to work with Lingusamy, they were certain
that I was going to enjoy my stint with him. His style
is to extract work without troubling the artists. What
I like in him the most is that he enjoys his work. He
knows the reactions of the audience very well-when they
would clap for a scene, when they would laugh and things
like that. I think that is the secret of his success.
Tamannah the
current hot property
of Kollywood is the
greatest plus for Paiyaa.
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How
did you get the opportunity to work on your
first film?
Tamannah the current hot property of Kollywood
is the greatest plus for Paiyaa. There are only
two main characters in the film which travels
through out. Generally it is difficult to react
to someone who does not know the language but
it was very easy with Tamannah as she used to
take her dialogue sheets well in advance, write
them in English and speak which would sound
just like Tamil. She is very hard working and
sincere. As she is deeply involved in her work,
no time was wasted on the sets. Our discussions
were only work-centric and I liked such working
style but where I was caught on my left foot
is in the dance segment. Tamannah dances very
well. This style of dancing is very new to me
which I have not done earlier. In my previous
films whatever I did was only called dance but
in Paiyaa there were dance movements and dance
masters and I had to do a decent job to make
the scene appealing.
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What about your
romantic scenes?
Jagan has done an important role in the film.
If I take charge of comedy in the first half,
he does the honors in the second half. He wondered,
“Hey, everyone is talking about chemistry
between you and Tamannah, but I see you in the
front seat and she at the back seat of the car.
What kind of romance is that?” This is
precisely the romance that you would see in
Paiyaa. Romantic scenes are lesser in the film
as the two are not known to each other and are
complete strangers. However the romance would
be much highlighted in the song sequences. Visuals
in the song sequences have come out brilliantly.
The absolute intensity of the romance would
be palpable in the song sequences.
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Romantic scenes
are lesser
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Yuvan Shankar’s
music?
Yuvan has been with me right through. He was my junior
in school and I am very fond of him. In Paiyaa, all
the songs have turned out to be superhits. When Lingusamy
narrated the story I realized it is a musical film.
Adhering to this need, Yuvan has scored. After listening
to every composition, I would tell the director that
this was the best and realize the next one was better
than the earlier one. And
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Yuvan’s name has
become synonymous
with love.
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there is variety
in every number. If Adada mazhaida is a folksy
piece, then the first track is a soft romantic
one and En Kaadal Solla is city based number.
There is as much variety in music as in visuals.
Background score in Paiyaa is brilliant. For
the first twenty odd minutes, there would not
be much of dialogues and the story moves through
music. Yuvan’s role is phenomenal in Paiyaa.
Now a days, Yuvan’s name has become synonymous
with love.
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Your favorite song
and can you hum it for us?
Suthude Suthude is my favorite number when I was acting
in the film. When I was performing the emotions were
intense for this number. But ‘En Kaadal Solla’
is what I frequently listen to. I’m sorry I can’t
sing.
About Milind Soman,
the villain…
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Milind Soman
still looks hot
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I first met Milind Soman at Sathara,
a place near Pune, when we were shooting a fight
sequence. He looks like a hero and I a villain.
He is after all the most handsome man of India
right? Milind Soman still looks hot. Lingusamy
always wants to make films stylishly and to
steer away from the routine stuff, he had cast
Milind Soman. He is not the typical villain
in veshti with moustache but a stylish one in
jeans. As his character is a Mumbai based one,
he has spoken in Hindi but due to his interactions,
it was easy to understand him. His expression
and body language were brilliant. He used to
score in minute expressions and breeze past.
As Paiyaa is romance based film, villainy in
it will not be powerful as in any of the other
Lingusamy’s films and will be simple but
effective. |
Did you use a body
double for fight sequences? In olden days,
body doubles were used but now the audience finds
out very easily and they cannot be cheated. I have
not used a body double. Stylish fight sequences are
the usual highlight in Lingusamy’s films. The
making and presentation would be different. Similarly,
I feel the fight sequences will be much talked about
in Paiyaa. This is the first time for me to feature
in such action sequences. Car chase scenes would be
very interesting and stunt choreography is very novel
in Paiyaa. On the whole action sequences are very
powerful and different in this film.
Any unforgettable
scene?
There were many unforgettable scenes in Aayirathil
Oruvan as it was a new attempt. However Paiyaa is
the usual film that you see but presented in a different
format. As the film is woven around the Highway, this
film becomes unique. I think this is the first time
such an attempt is made. As it was shot in the highway,
a minimum of two to three cameras were used for filming.
So we brought in a truck from Mumbai and designed
three cars in the same format and we were toggling
them as per the requirement. As I love driving, I
enjoyed the shooting. I liked all the car chasing
sequences. There is a scene where the car goes in
reverse in the opposite traffic. That was a thrilling
one.
Any risky shot?
There is a scene where ten cars will be chasing and
there emerged another car in the perpendicular direction.
I was not informed about this. Ten cars were moving
at full throttle in an open field and I spotted this
Maruthi van. Usually, Maruthi vans don’t have
good pick up and move very slowly. I saw cameraman Madhi
sitting inside the van when I came close to the vehicle.
They tried to speed up and come along with me but they
could not. All these ten vehicles should avoid the Maruthi
van and everything should happen in a fraction of a
second. Madhi dropped his camera in fear. It was a close
shave. When I see that shot in the film, it appears
really scary. It was indeed chilling because we wee
not informed about the Maruthi van. Although the stunt
sequences were taxing to me, the outputs are powerful.
While filming some of the stunt sequences in Mumbai,
I was suffering from terrible back pain but could not
cancel the schedule. I wore belt and performed.
What in your opinion is the USP of Paiyaa
Tamannah has been portrayed so beautifully.
Music is one of the big USPs. Another strong
aspect of Paiyaa is its making especially cameraman
Madhi’s work. Technically, Paiyaa will
stand out.
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Technically, Paiyaa
will stand out.
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Does Paiyaa have any resemblance to Ram Gopal Varma’s
Road?
No, absolutely not! Paiyaa is completely different.
Another interesting aspect of the film will be the dialogues
that lead to the friendship between the lead pair. When
a young man meets a beautiful young girl, it is only
normal that he would go all out to impress the girl.
These sequences would appear very natural and amusing.
Paiyaa in a nutshell...
Paiyaa will be a film to which you can come with your
family, enjoy, laugh heartily, savor the beautiful visuals,
applaud and take home a pleasant feel. It is undoubtedly
a clean film and you can take your children. Normally
Lingusamy’s films will not be bold and Paiyaa
is no exception either.
What are your next
projects?
Naan Magaan Alla directed by Suseendran of Vennila Kabadi
Kuzhu and Yuvan scores music. It revolves around a middle
class family in Chennai. My screen father is a call
taxi driver in the film. It is a bit of an offbeat,
realistic film. Apart from a family drama, it is also
a crime thriller. It has shaped up very well.
Are you again a
dirty boy in Naan Magaan Alla?
I am a middle class Chennai boy in Naan Magaan Alla.
While Paiyaa can be termed as a fantasy, romantic film,
NMA will be more on the realistic side. I accepted this
film mainly because of my character called Jeeva who
is replete with positive approach towards life.
About the remake
of Telugu Vikramarkudu?
I saw Vikramarkudu when I was doing Paruthi Veeran.
It is a very exciting film, double role; one is a police
and the other a thief. I felt it was a good script to
do a double role. One can show a huge variation between
two roles. It is a complete emotional entertainer. Comedy
forms 70% of the film and emotional aspect travels along
with it. I was very eager to do this film.
Who is the heroine
in Vikramarkudu remake?
Tamannah. Shiva who has directed a few films in Telugu
is making his entry in Tamil. For the first time, I
am joining hands with Santhanam for the comedy track.
The promos of Paiyaa
had you mouthing punch dialogues. Are there such dialogues
in the film?
It is all presumption. Please don’t believe them.
It is a comedy scene, that’s about it. You will
understand it when you see the film.
Your brother Suriya
says that producers are lining up to book you skipping
him. Is it true?
No. he is chumma giving a build up and there is nothing
like that. In fact people who are not able to reach
him approach me to help them. That’s the truth.
They tell me a story and say it is for Suriya and wonder
if I would like the same. My brother’s level is
different and he is just kidding. That’s all. |
