DIRECTOR BALAJI MOHAN INTERVIEW

I grew up in Trichy. I did my education there. I was quiet active in extra-curricular activities. And at the same time, I was also good at studies. But towards the end of my schooling I understood that I was more attracted to extra-curricular. I participated in every cultural activity, including dance and drama. I can also play keyboard.
 

When I realized that I knew all these in bits and pieces, I figured out that the best place where I can put to use all my talents was cinema.
 

Me being in Trichy was anything but helpful in chasing my dreams. And unfortunately, I scored very well in my 12^th and had to take up engineering. I was admitted in SSN, Chennai. I sustained for 3 semesters and after that I couldn’t hold myself.
 

I decided that no matter what happens, I’m going to go after my passion.

When I started making Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi into a feature, I exactly knew how it was going to turn out. That was because I had invested a lot of time on the planning.
 

While scripting I kept in mind the difference and the entertainment elements I wanted to bring into the film. I made Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi with a proper blend of experimentation and entertainment.

Industry reacted exactly the way I expected them to. They noticed the difference in the narrative and at the same time they had fun watching it. Same was the case with the audiences. 

To be frank, we didn’t put as much thoughts into the title for both the films. They were spontaneous and that is why they fit the film well.
 

We knew the title was going to be Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi, even before we started working on the film. But, Vaayai Moodi Pesavum struck me during the process of scripting and I couldn’t have thought of a better one.
 

Vaayai Moodu and Pesavum, as you all know are opposites. Our lives have all kind of extremes and that is what makes it beautiful. At the end of the film, you’ll realize the oxymoron in the title actually makes sense. 

Madhoo Bala is playing is a solid role and a perfect one to mark her comeback. It is also a major decision from her side to take up a strong character role, considering she ruled the industry during her active years. Having someone as spectacular as her on board adds value to the project.

She was also excited about her role when I narrated the story, but was a bit skeptical about her part in Malayalam. We convinced her to do it and as usual she nailed it. She is like this student who pretends to be nervous but cracks every exam with top marks.

All these characters are not completely imaginary. My characters are inspired from the people I’ve met and the knowledge we are all exposed to. But you cannot add every character that you like. You must know the knack of including just the characters that would go with your content well.
 

You’ll not find the characters in the film strange. You can easily relate to all of them.
 

I’m also part of the society and to an extent, I have an idea what kind of content and characters can entertain people. I could have taken myself too seriously and come up with most whacky concepts that are absolutely strange. But I believe that we enjoy a movie when we have instances we can relate to. 

Sean was no fresher to music. His independent album is pretty popular among the music lovers. I myself am a fan of him. I saw him perform at an indie-music festival and fell in love with his music. Later, I went home, surfed and found one of his compositions on the net titled, Mayakkura Poo Vaasam. That song was an inspiration for me while writing the script of Vaayai Moodi Pesavum. I was also thinking of using that song in the film.
 

Like they say, what goes around comes around. Sean was also one of the composers we had in mind when we were discussing the project. When I started to work with him I realized that he was much more capable than what we had demanded from him. 

You’ll never and ever catch me saying I was forced to act in a certain project. No one can force me into acting. I’ll volunteer myself. I love and enjoy acting and as I told you I’ve been a fan of the art since my school days. In fact I wanted to be an actor.
 

I’ve also done an eccentric news reader’s role in VMP. The moment you see me on screen, you’ll realize I do not take myself seriously. That’s exactly me both as a director and an actor