PRODUCER S SASHIKANTH INTERVIEW

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“THAT WAS AN UNBELIEVABLE FEELING TO REALISE WE WERE GOING TO CREATE A RAHMAN MUSICAL” - SASHIKANTH

Interview Team : Dilani Rabindran

“There was no one who heard what this movie was about and said ‘no’ to being a part of it” says producer Sashi, of Kaaviya Thalaivan – the epic A.R. Rahman musical directed by Vasanthabalan and starring Siddharth & Prithviraj that releases this month. The period drama has been a two and a half year collaboration amongst some of the biggest names in Tamil Cinema, and Sashi admits that taking on the project meant agreeing to do something very important for the industry and offering audiences the kind of film they haven’t seen in a long time.

In this interview the head of Y NOT Studios, whose past films include Vaayai Moodi PesavumKadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi gives Dilani Rabindran a detailed view of coordinating such a grand feature, and even discusses what it was like to give A.R. Rahman a challenge and be gifted with the late Vaali’s final works.




 

Kaaviya Thalaivan is a grand, musical period piece that is starkly different to the past films Y NOT has produced, which were modern, romantic/comedy genres. How did this film come to Y NOT? 

Kaaviya Thalaivan began post Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi starring Siddharth. Vasanthabalan & Siddharth had previously discussed it and Siddharth is a very good friend of mine. When Vasanthabalan independently approached us I spoke to Siddharth and he reaffirmed that it was a great project. There are projects that can confirm a brand identity for a company. With this we knew instinctively that this was something that could place [Y NOT] above the level that we were involved in to date. We knew this was a 2.5 year journey and it would be hard work, because it’s been a long time since this kind of movie has been around. We also knew this was going to be top heavy; we wanted to go to the best musician possible, and we knew Rahman sir would be our top choice. 

We knew this was a 2.5 year journey and it would be hard work

 

So Siddharth was actually involved with the project before Y NOT joined in?

Yes, he was. The reassurance that he gave me was that “listen, you’re onto something really special and this project requires a high-quality producer, it’s not just something you can walk into with money and be done with it, this will require an enormous amount of effort”. 

 

Shooting took place in Chennai & Kerala, and co-writer Jeyamohan mentioned that it was helpful to shoot on locations because it helped to get the feel of the time period correct. What was it like to coordinate/produce such rich visual settings? 

Very early on it was decided that other than [the scenes for the plays], everything would be done outdoors and shot on live location, because the authenticity of the time would only come from the space that we could capture it in. There was 3 months of location hunting, right from Karaikudi to Thenkasi to all those places that would give you the 1930s feel. We carefully went through at least 200-300 locations before we zeroed in on places. There are scenes where there might be 4 locations used to complete that one scene! We knew we had a solid story to say on paper but how well the story is told comes from the visual detailing. It was not just the director’s goal; everyone on the team, like the DOP, the art director and all their assistants, traveled extensively to lock the locations. We began the project in July 2012 but the actual shooting began in August 2013, so there was a year of pre-production.

We carefully went through at least 200-300 locations before we zeroed in on places

 

And in that pre-production period A.R. Rahman created the album?

We were very particular, given Rahman sir’s strained time that we get all the songs from him prior to going to shoot. We didn’t want to finish a schedule and then wait for Rahman sir to give us another song and then shoot it; we wanted to make sure that the shoot was completely controlled by us. From October 2012 to July 2013 he gave us 90% of the songs, and we utilized that time to get all the other details right.

From October 2012 to July 2013 Rahman sir gave us 90% of the songs

 

I read that Vasanthabalan was inspired by past classic films like Shankarabharanam and Salangai Oli and the musical aspects of those. Is there any classic film that you feel KT will be reminiscent of?

I think the film has a very similar feel to the classic Sivaji film Thillana Mohanambal (1968). That’s a film where they talk of a small set of musicians, and how 20-30 people in a troupe live together. The first half of Kaaviya Thalaivan has that essence of how troupes stick together.

I think the film has a very similar feel to the classic Sivaji film Thillana Mohanambal (1968)

 

Siddharth & Prithviraj are both well known in all the Indian film industries right now. What was it like for you to see & work with these stars donning these character roles, and what did you think of their performances?

The movie is about actors fighting for the stage in the 1940s; it’s a trend that continues to date. You have your MGR & your Sivaji; your Rajini and your Kamal. There are always 2 kinds of actors in a particular era. So there is a thread in this lineage of our cinema that can show the 2 kinds of actors, and Siddharth & Prithvi’s dedication to the roles to show those are outstanding. I think after a very long time this will be a movie that will stand out even just for the acting that has gone into it. This is an actors’ movie!

The movie is about actors fighting for the stage in the 1940s

 

Yes, the acting and the music! This is certainly a musical, rather than a movie with music. Let’s talk about the film’s music director – A. R. Rahman.

I keep telling people that Rahman sir doesn’t work for the smaller companies; he doesn’t go outside of the Shankar’s or the Mani Ratnam’s of the world to step out of his own happy space, and this was completely a challenge for him as well. The kind of involvement that he’s had over the past 2 years has been phenomenal, and even now, every 2 days he’ll call me to ask what’s happening! So, right from the guy who has won an Oscar, it’s been the same type of curiosity [for everyone on this project]; every time someone has gone to narrate this film the person has said “we’re on board, because this is something different and special”.

Every 2 days Rahman will call me to ask what’s happening!

 

So exactly how did AR Rahman come on board?

The consensus was that we needed someone who was at their top of their game to pull off something like this. This is not the kind of project that you could just start composing on day one, there needed to be a lot of research to understand that time’s sound, etc. During the discussion of wanting someone at the top Balan himself said “let’s just go all the way and say we want Rahman”, and our first reaction was “are you joking?” Then, 2 minutes later we too realized “I bet he would be interested in doing it.” So immediately after this conversation, Siddharth, having worked with Rahman on 3 prior occasions, was able to set up a meeting between Rahman and Balan. And in a matter of 7-10 days he was on board.
 

There’s a character [loosely based on yesteryear singer] “Kitappa” and the minute Rahman sir came on board he just sent a 2-worded email to all of us saying “Kitappa ready”. That was all he said, those 2 words to confirm the project. That was an unbelievable feeling for all of us, to realise we were going to create a Rahman musical.
 

He brings such enthusiasm every time he comes and does something, like the press meet or the album launch. He has been a catalyst for all of us; he’s the one who opened doors for us. His coming on board was a major shot in the arm for all of us, actually, even to date.

The minute Rahman sir came on board he just sent a 2-worded email to all of us saying “Kitappa ready”.

 

Was the production team closely involved with the recordings or did Rahman sir come to you with finished tracks?

Rahman sir welcomed suggestions and feedback from the team. Balan and him had a lot of discussion. Rahman is open to being said “no” to. There was a song that he did 6 times! I don’t think anyone has ever got 6 [iterations] for one song from him before. So that’s the level of involvement he had with the team; I think he was curious too because this was something he was trying out as well. I think it all worked in our favor.

Rahman is open to being said “no” to

 

The album is a chartbuster already; do you have a favorite song from the movie?

“Yaarumilla” is my favorite without a doubt! Even today when I see the film, [that song] is an extraordinary piece of music and visuals coming together.
 

Every song in this movie has a concept behind it. With “Yaarumilla” – that particular idea was based on the romance between Kitappa and KB Sundarambal. There were letters that Sundarambal had sent to Kitappa which are supposed to be on par with Shakespearan love letters! So the song’s inspiration comes from that.

There were letters that Sundarambal had sent to Kitappa which are supposed to be on par with Shakespearan love letters! 

 

The lyrics throughout all the songs in the movie are truly beautiful and so suited to the periodic genre, and were written by a combination of Na Muthukumar, Pa Vijay and the late, great Vaali sir. Can you discuss how this collaboration came to be?

The entire album was meant to be written by Vaali sir. Unfortunately he passed away after writing the first two. So the “Alli Arjuna” song is the last piece he wrote. He came to the studio, listened to the song and as he was leaving he had to go to the hospital and that was it. We were given his last song.
 

So then we moved on to Na Muthukumar and Pa Vijay. Another reason, that “Yaarumilla” is so interesting is that Pa Vijay was actually writing about Vaali sir. He is referring to him missing Vaali and writing for him when no one is around!

Another reason, that “Yaarumilla” is so interesting is that Pa Vijay was actually writing about Vaali sir. 

 

Vedhicka has a great role in the film, post her critical praise for her role in Paradesi. Do you think this will top her ‘Angamma’ performance?

I would describe Vedhicka as a slightly old-school heroine. She uses a lot of hand gesturing, etc. and that’s exactly how they acted back then, but she is also naturally like that as well. She was a perfect fit in the sense that I think she is slightly more expressive as an actor. It is a role of a lifetime for her, solid and performance-based, and I think she outdoes her character from Paradesi

I would describe Vedhicka as a slightly old-school heroine.

 

This is the second film that you’ve co-produced with Radiance Media Group. What is the future of that partnership?

So Varun [of Radiance Media] and I are friends from before. He has been a great help and the support that he gave was necessary for this movie to see the daylight. He is involved in our next production called Irudhi Suttru which is a bilingual (Tamil & Hindi) project starring Madhavan; and to give you a sneak peek of that I can tell you that you’re going to see a complete anti-thesis to that first Madhavan that you saw [in Alaipayuthey]; that will be a game-changing movie as well post Kaaviya Thalaivan

You’re going to see a complete anti-thesis to that first Madhavan that you saw [in Alaipayuthey]

 

Is Kaaviya Thalaivan then officially the largest scale film, in budget and scope, you have worked on to date or do your upcoming productions now top it?

Kaaviya Thalaivan is definitely bigger than any other production we have handled or are handling and I’m not sure that I would want to handle another project of this scale again, at least not in the near future. It’s not just the money, the scale [also shows] in the number of days you stay awake! It has been absolutely worth it, but something has to come along that matches this level for me to put 2.5 years in again. 

I’m not sure that I would want to handle another project of this scale again

 

So the music and the trailer have led people to expect a truly grand, beautiful and classy film, so I would like to know what you hope audiences will take away from it when they see it in theatres.

For me, movies have always been a place where magic happens; there’s that sense of being in another place and time when you go into a theatre, and I believe this movie is truly in that spirit –it will take you to another world filled with people you’ve never met before. I think this is the first movie from Y NOT Studios that will truly be able to do that. I believe people will like it because they are curious and we are not trying to serve them the same thing over again, and all of this will constitute for a very satisfying 2.5 hours in the theatre.

Kaaviya Thalaivan will take you to another world filled with people you’ve never met before.


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This page hosts exclusive interviews with actors, actresses, film technicians and related celebrities. The interviews are generally personal views of the guest about their projects and film related matters. People looking for information about actors, actresses, directors, music directors, cameramen and other technicians will find this page useful.