DIRECTOR PRAKASH KOVELAMUDI INTERVIEW

Two reasons! Anushka’s role in the film is a performance based one. Her name in the film is Sweety and her character has a lot of spunk. Sweety is very lively, gutsy and is comfortable in the way she is. But when there is pressure from the society and from her family to lose weight and then get married, there comes a vulnerable side to her character which makes you feel for her. To strike this balance is very difficult for an actress, and as a performer we felt Anushka would be the best one to do this. We wanted someone to play it well and at the same time play it in a realistic fashion.

Given the range and body of work that Anushka has done, she was perfect. From a physicality perspective also, when we needed someone to put on weight, we wanted the artist to look adorable, charming and cute. In that angle also Anushka  has lent herself very well to the role.

Primarily it came from a character perspective. Arya’s role of Abishek is that of an NRI documentary film maker. We wanted someone with a sincere look about changing the world and society. At the same time, the character also should look sophisticated and fit. He is a fitness enthusiast. For a girl to be struck by love at first sight and smitten by looks, we wanted someone with that charm and appeal. Arya checked in all these boxes.

From a performance stand point, his role is very subtle. Playing it subtle, he still needs to make an impact. I have seen all his films, and I really think, he plays a wide range and he perfectly fitted these parameters. In fact he was our first choice. He was very busy and once he heard the story, he moved around his dates to accommodate us. We are fortunate in both the cases that we got the actors we wanted.  Thanks to the producers who played a major role in getting these artists for us.

In my opinion, there are four pillars to Inji Iduppazhagi. They are the producers, actors, the writing and Keeravani sir’s music. He captured the cultural milieu of an upper middle class society aptly. All the songs are situation driven and they are not cut away  numbers. Keeravani sir’s music moves the story forward. His background score elevated the story to a higher level. He was a big asset in designing the song, bringing the desired lyrical quality, interacting with the lyricist and getting the right kind of voices for each of the song. It was an enjoyable process collaborating with Keeravani sir. 

I have always been a big fan of Prakash Raj and Oorvashi.

I have seen Oorvashi madam’s films a lot as I was in Chennai in my growing up years. I used to love her comic timing. For this particular character who constantly nags her daughter to lose weight, there also needs to be certain sense of humor. The way she balanced it was wonderful. Inherently she has that quality. At the same time, she is able to show a mother’s pain and a certain level of vulnerability. She is a consummate actress where in essaying her role, she did not make it one dimensional.

Prakash Raj plays the owner of a slimming centre. It is all about show and enticing the customers to his centre. His character is quirky but there is something likeable about him although he plays a negative shade. That’s a difficult balancing act. He has struck the right balance.

I just feel that the idea of size, beauty and its associated facets are perpetuated by the Western media and we have been influenced by the same for the last ten years. If we look at our culture or paintings, whether it’s the women or the heroines (in films) set in the time period till the 90s, they were  of different shapes and sizes and beauty was never measured with respect to that. It was more of their look personality or acting. In the past decade or so, the Western media has propagated the idea that unless you are size zero, you are no longer beautiful or desirable. There is a lot of pressure on the society through mass media influences like the TV or the magazines or fashion trends. These influence our mindset.

Through this movie, I am making a statement against that way of being and trying to tell, ‘please embrace for what you are. You are not measured by a weighing scale’. That’s my personal take and that’s why I made this film. 

No, not really. I came from theatre. The kind of acting which is there in films, it is a little different in theatre and I was not able to adapt my style to films. I don’t think I was a good actor. I am more comfortable directing.