BW: Veyil’s success
must have increased the expectations
on you. Was it stressful?
Vasantha
Balan : I am not worried
about expectations. However
as a film maker I consciously
work for my films to be spoken
for its novelty. When Veyil
was in the final stages of making,
I started writing the script
of Angadi Theru. During that
time I did not know Veyil would
bring in many awards. When I
started Angadi Theru, I wanted
its genre to be different from
Veyil which had rural milieu
and talked about a winner and
a loser. At the same time, I
would like my film to have feelings,
emotions and speak profoundly
about love and affection. I
was keen to discuss the lives
of people belonging to the lower
strata of society. When I started
my next work, I wanted it to
be an honest and a successful
work. There were a few negligible
clichés in Veyil. And
I did not want them in Angadi
Theru. Coming to awards, they
have led me to do a decent film
without many blunders. Veyil’s
international journey has taught
me to avoid a certain type of
flash editing as it is being
viewed as a serious flaw overseas
which you will not see in Angadi
Theru. I have tried to portray
feelings without gimmicks and
have attempted to bring that
magic in the shooting itself.
What are the clichés
of Veyil?
Oh, they are not much and are
very miniscule in nature. As
a director, they would be visible
only to me. It is my way of
being critical about my own
work. The song ‘Ooran
thotathile’ is a kind
of hero ‘intro’
number which is very integral
to commercial films. Though
this number talks about the
rise of the hero and there was
a small story in it, I feel
it could have been avoided.
I have avoided such flaws in
Angadi Theru.
What
is Angadi Theru all about?
Many people ask me what is Angadi.
Angadi is a pure Tamil word
which means market or bazaar
and Theru, as is known to all,
is a street. So bazaar street
is the meaning of Angadi Theru.
To my knowledge, there are no
films on bazaar. There could
be films on gangster war in
a street or such stuff. But
there may not be films about
a business street. In our country,
most of the cities have a specific
street which is exclusively
known for its business. In Virudu
Nagar we call them ‘chinna
bazaar’ and ‘periya
bazaar’. In Chennai, Ranganathan
street in T Nagar is the bazaar
street. There is a life in all
these streets which begin early
in the day and goes on for long
hours. Angadi Theru is a recording
of such a life in a bazaar street.
In Silapathigaram and many such
old Tamil epics, you can find
the word Angadi. I am glad that
I am responsible for popularizing
this word.
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What
is the strength of Angadi
Theru?
The story
of Angadi Theru is new
and has not been told
till now in any of the
world films in any format.
This is its specialty.
The backdrop is very new
and the film deals with
various people in the
bazaar. A market place
sells many things from
inanimate to animate items.
In this world we all come
with a bar code. Everything
is for sale and only the
rate differs. In such
a material world, |
"
There are 300
newcomers in
Angadi Theru " |
|
Angadi Theru is about a journey
which seeks love. This is
its strength. In addition,
my background, the atmosphere
and the way it is shot are
new. I have shot almost 80
scenes using hidden camera.
It is difficult to create
such a big ambience with many
shoppers. I did not create
such a mood, it automatically
happened. Angadi Theru speaks
about survival which I think
is new to Tamil cinema. The
struggle for existence of
a man is discussed. There
are 300 newcomers in Angadi
Theru which will give you
a feeling of having visited
Ranganathan street. It is
not only the noise, not only
the goods, but is the life
of a thousand souls. There
is a physically challenged
beggar who is dropped by his
mom every morning who goes
on to do her job, returns
in the evening to pick him.
So there is a life even there.
When I say a beggar, please
don’t think Angadi Theru
is about beggars. All along
when we go for shopping, we
complete our shopping list,
have some refreshments and
get back. We don’t think
about the lives of people
who are in the market place.
But after Angadi Theru, you
will start thinking about
it too. This is the strength
of Angadi Theru.
On
the search of your hero Mahesh?
My story required a boy from
a small village in Tirunelveli
who comes to the city. So
I thought why not I take someone
from such a place directly.
I wanted a person who speaks
the local language, who has
specific facial expression
and has an ordinary face that
has not been ravaged by beauty
parlors. I liked the thrill
in this hunt. In fact when
I started Veyil after my first
film Album, my family and
well-wishers wanted me to
do a formulaic commercial
project. They were very apprehensive
about a film that talks about
a loser and tried to dissuade
me. But the normal path does
not excite me and I like the
thrills unchartered terrains
offer and I started my journey
towards that thrill in search
of my hero. A team of 35 people
were involved in this mission
and we found our man in Tirunelveli
playing volleyball. He belongs
to a very simple family and
his dad sells small eats in
a theatre. I also consider
it to be a forward step in
a
|
"
A director is
the mother of
every artist" |
director
wherein he makes a positive
difference in someone’s
life. In this way, I feel
a director is the mother
of every artist and I
am happy to have found
Mahesh. I consider his
success as mine. It is
my deep desire that he
succeeds. His face is
such an ordinary, pitiable
one; he need not try to
show any emotion. It is
simple if he comes and
stands in front of the
camera. This is what I
needed and he satisfied
my need. He coalesced
with the script very well.
|
|
Why Anjali when Asins, Trishas
and Nayantharas are there?
I am not doing
a big commercial film to have
Asin or Trisha or Nayanthara.
I appreciate them in films as
a fan. I wanted a heroine with
a ‘girl next door’
look. When we analyze love,
in most cases, the involvement
will be with our next door girl
or boy. The simple reason is
that this is the face we bump
into every day and every night.
To me, a face with its minute
imperfections appears very realistic.
I saw Anjali in Ram and her
plain Jane looks appealed to
me but I chose her with a bit
of trepidation because I wanted
to hunt for my heroine also.
But as the hero hunt itself
had taken a quite a while, I
decided against it. However
Anjali has done a wonderful
job and I am happy I chose her.
She is a director’s actress
who has cooperated very well.
She is also a very dedicated
artist.
About
cinematography
In Angadi Theru,
I am introducing a new cinematographer,
Richard M Nathan who was K V
Anand’s associate and
has worked in Sivaji and a few
Hindi films. Angadi Theru needed
a hunting type of camera as
it was full of thrills and 90%
of the shooting was done at
nights. I used to start around
6 in the evening and go on till
9 or 10 the next morning. It
was a very uncomfortable situation
where I should complete my work
before the crowd starts coming
in as I was shooting mostly
in crowded |
areas.
So I needed a cameraman
who will give me enough
dates and I opted for
Richard. When I had narrated
the script to him, he
brought in his test shoot
which I really liked.
Richard is a highly bankable
person who never got unperturbed
by the late night schedule.
We have done a lot of
hidden shoots and Richard
rose up to the occasion.
His visuals were much
appreciated in the audio
release also. |
"
Richard is a
highly bankable
person " |
|
Editor Sreekar Prasad
When I desired my film to
reach international standards
I wanted the editing to go to
the right hands and the first
name that came to my mind was
Sreekar Prasad. Katradu Thamizh
gave me two talents, Sreekar
Prasad and Anjali. His repertoire
is impressive with eight coveted
awards and many cross over films.
His editing is seamless and
I have been getting many offers
to present my film in international
film festivals. The value of
my film goes up when Sreekar
Prasad is at the helm of affairs
in the editing department. |
"
Sneha has
come for a
big price " |
About Sneha’s
cameo?
It was for an advertisement
campaign in the film
and as Sneha does many
such campaigns we wanted
to cast her. And Sneha
has come for a big price.
It is a small role.
|
|
About
‘Karungali Naaye’
number which ridicules bosses.
In our various walks of life,
we often come across a few characters
who would constantly be nitpicking
about us to our superior, be
it in school or in work place.
We cannot do anything and have
to simply put up with them impotently.
These people make our life miserable
and we have to live with them
as we have no choice. I get
very angry with such people.
So this song is for all such
people to vent their powerless
anger.
About
Kadaigalai Pesum Vizhiyale?
It was shot at night. The
couple in love is spending some
time together but the man does
not have a single penny to spend.
All the same, he feels good
because his lover is beside
him. I viewed the night as an
occasion which celebrates love
unmindful of mundane issues.
The lovers miss the last bus
and consider that night to be
their last night. At this juncture,
I would like to draw the attention
to nights of Chennai. It is
the most beautiful one. Kamal
Hassan once said that nights
have one thousand eyes |
whereas
day has just one. During
the day, you cannot notice
anything; it is always
fast paced and action
packed. Nights are intensely
peaceful and lend us tranquility.
Even a busy street takes
on a beautiful shape during
nights. I somehow feel
nights are hugely scented
and we all go to sleep
engulfed by its fragrance.
I like the beauty of night
and wanted a song set
at that time. I shot the
number for ten nights
with much difficulty.
The song celebrates night.
|
"
Richard is a
highly bankable
person " |
|
I have always observed a peculiar
smell especially in very old
unattended temples encompassing
bats, holy ash and such things
which you will not find in well
maintained temple. In this song
a particular line draws a parallel
between this unique fragrance
to that of his lover. Secondly
I also find a rhythm in the
revolution of the moon which
has been brought beautifully
in the lyrics by Naa Muthukumar.
I have dedicated this number
to the memory of veteran music
director Salil Chaudhery. He
is one of my favorites whose
music has a mesmerizing and
haunting quality.
Who
is the villain in Angadi Theru?
Fate and life!
Would
Angadi Theru also bag many awards
like Veyil?
Yes, very definitely. Veyil
has brought me to a different
league in international cinema
and people are approaching me
to screen Angadi Theru. I will
most certainly present my film
and it would also fetch many
awards.
|
"
I do not want to be a
senior bully standing
at
the gate and blocking
newcomers. " |
After Veyil, why was
your next venture not
for S pictures?
S Pictures was started
mainly with the objective
of encouraging and giving
an opportunity for talented
newcomers. I do not
want to be a senior
bully standing at the
gate and blocking others.
|
|
Role of Assistant Directors
in cinema?
Cinema
is said to be an amalgamation
of 24 crafts and for a
director to execute this,
he needs the help of assistant
directors. A director
thinks but assistant director
executes it. For instance,
I have spent three days
in a blacksmith’s
place to ready the knife
that was used by Indian
thatha in Indian. For
Angadi Theru, I wanted
to find a hero but the
job was done by my assistant
directors Nagaraj and
Prasad. Such instances
are aplenty. The job |
"
A director thinks
but assistant director
executes it" |
|
of
an assistant director is tantamount
to managing one thousand elephants.
It is round the clock work.
Assistant directors are the
soul, blood and skin of a film
but with a minimal salary. One
can get a degree in film making
from institutes but the nuances
of film making can be learnt
only by working as an assistant
director. Shooting spot is tension
filled area. How the director
deals with a variety of atypical
situations makes for a good
learning. Shooting spots let
you discover where to give in
and where to stay firm. From
today’s assistant directors
only, tomorrow’s Sathyajit
Rays or Mrinal Sens or Shyam
Benegals will be born. In my
opinion, assistant directors
are the backbone of the film.
On
the current trends in Tamil
cinema
It is very healthy and audience
tastes are expanding. A director’s
main job is to develop the tastes
of the audience. There was a
time when people believed that
no body would like to watch
a sulking hero but my Veyil
proved them wrong. There are
no limitations. The success
of films like Pasanga, Subramaniapuram,
Paruthi Veeran, Nadodigal only
reveal that tastes of audience
can never be undermined. They
seem |
"
Tamil cinema has
certainly improved in
the
technical side, in
narration and in being
realistic." |
to want something
new. For the past four
years, middle cinema
is recording success
and I am very happy
to have contributed
in my own way through
Veyil. Tamil cinema
has certainly improved
in the technical side,
in narration and in
being realistic. This
can be considered as
the golden age of Tamil
cinema. I am planning
to organize a film festival
for Tamil films here
and invite delegates
from around the world
and showcase our masterpieces.
This has been my dream
and I hope to realize
it next year.
|
|
Your favorite directors?
The list is long but I wish
to state contemporary ones.
In Tamil I like Katradu Thamizh
director Ram, in Hindi Anurag
Kashyap, Rock on’s Farhan
Akthar, Neeraj Pandey of Wednesday
fame. In the international scenario,
my favorites are Majid Majidi
and Alejandro Gonzalez.
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What
do you like in Shankar?
He is
a very calm director and
does not get perturbed.
He is extremely hard working.
Even for a minute detail,
he would repeatedly work
and bring the best in
the screen play. He is
very adept in giving the
work to the right person
and getting the job done.
I like his grandeur visual
sense. He |
"
Shankar’s films
are a carnival and
a true celebration. " |
|
can
make the most complicated subject
also understandable to the common
man through his simple narration.
I like Shankar for increasing
the budget of Tamil cinema to
150 crore. He is the pride of
Tamil cinema and I am proud
to have worked under him. Shankar’s
films are a carnival and a true
celebration.
Is
it true that you will be directing
an English film?
It is not an English film
but a cross over like Slum dog
millionaire. I don’t want
to leave Tamil films immediately.
I want to focus here and complete
a couple of them. Perhaps later
I will start as an experimental
attempt in English. I have not
made up my mind. It is true
I got an offer but it may not
happen immediately.
What
would you want to be known as
after a few years?
I want to be known as a director
who gives innovative, quality
films. And I don’t want
to be typecast or bracketed
within a framework. I want to
be recognized as a director
who would churn out different
genres of films. I want to be
a film maker with diverse works
to my credit. In the olden days
director Sridhar’s films
were like that, each one different
from others. Similarly Manivannan’s
films will never be on predictable
genres. |
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