PERSONALITY
Gambler at Heart Director Selvaraghavan has managed to create a ‘brand’ for himself, thanks to the edgy, out-of-the-ordinary films he’s made in the past couple of years. In this frank and honest chat, he talks about the Aayirathil Oruvan experience, his relationships – found and lost, and what to expect from the Brand Selvaraghavan stable
Mixed Reactions: Aayirathil Oruvan “As a filmmaker, I have always received mixed reactions for my work. But, I decided quite a long time ago that there was no point in playing safe. I am a gambler at heart and this was my big one! But then again, in this industry, so many movies come and go… how many generate the level of discussion that this film has? At times like this, it feels good to be bold. Instead of making the same kind of formulaic films, I wanted to break away and do something radically different. At the end of the day, I have done it. I have made the movie. And it has made back all the money that was invested. It was a commercial success. And anyway, no movie has universal acclaim; it’s impossible to satisfy everybody or keep everybody happy. Our goal was to break the ‘only for
mindless entertainment’, spoon-feeding aspect of the Tamil industry and actually come up with a movie that made you think. Movies have to be watched with intelligence and treated with as much respect as any other art form. Many people have told me that it was only when they saw the movie for the second time that they understood it. This is only because they come in expecting to be spoon-fed entertainment. Only when they go back with an open mind to see the movie do they understand what’s happening and are able to appreciate it. On the lighter side, I think that because so many people ended up seeing the movie twice, we may have actually netted twice the box office collections (laughs)!” Great Gamble: Working with firsttimers over established actors “I knew from the very beginning itself that this wasn’t a movie that would be
completed in three months or so; it was going to take a lot more time than that. And, it was after I got all the technical people together for the pre-production of the film that we realised what an uphill task we were facing. I realised right away that this film was going to take at least a year. As it happened, it took far longer, but I knew even then that I needed my actors to be flexible. They needed to be able to put in the time and the effort it would take to pull off such a mammoth task.” Uphill Task: Staying Motivated “I have always had great respect for and trust in the people who are the end consumers of the movies we make— the audience. After all, I am one too. I get to see the film in its complete form only days before its final release. And till then, even I’m nervous and hope it turns out okay! But I have a responsibility to
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