Tribute to dads

After Mani Ratnam, Gautham Vasudeva Menon is one director who has made significant changes to Tamil commercial cinema. In a career spanning just seven years, Menon has pushed the cinematic envelope and brought in a savvy freshness to the form, hitherto unexplored. He has made four films in Tamil and two remakes of his own Tamil films in Hindi and Telugu and ushered in a new way of story telling. He has created unforgettable characters who are realistic and lifelike. The Anbu Selvan and Pandiya of Kaakha Kaakha, Ragavan of Vettayadu Vilayadu and Reena Joseph of Minnale are flesh and blood characters that audiences could relate to. His biggest strength is a strong script, and the way he is able to throw light on a star burdened by his image. Nobody in tinsel town can package a film with haunting music and stunning visuals better than the soft-spoken director whose pairing with Harris Jayaraj has always produced foot-tapping numbers. The buzz surrounding Vaaranam Aayiram is growing louder. How has the movie shaped up? Many people have told me that Vaaranam Aayiram (1000 Elephants) is a unique title. The story is about a man’s life. It could be anybody’s story. The guy is not a superhero. The film deals with his life from the time he is born till the time his career ends. The ups and downs of his life are chronicled — his falling in love, marriage to the girl of his dreams, his mother’s aspirations for him and above all, the deep love and special bonding that he shared with his father, who was his role model. I have given special emphasis to the father-son relationship. It sounds autobiographical. Does it have anything to do with your father’s demise last year? Yes, to a certain extent it is autobiographical but cinematic licences have been taken to make it an entertainer. The germ of the story actually originated after my dad’s death, when I got down to writing the script for the film. For every man, his father or appa is his biggest hero and an inspiration at every point in his life, even when it comes to falling in love. When I narrated the story to Surya, he said he had similar feelings about his dad. So, in a way, it is a tribute to all the fathers in the world. It is mostly from my life and the lives of some people I know. You were known as Gautham in your first film, now it has become Gautham Vasudeva Menon. Was this decision influenced by numerology? No, not at all! My first producer told me to drop my Malayalee surname. After my father’s death, I prefer to be known as Gautham Vasudeva Menon, the name that my father gave me. There are rumours that the film is ‘inspired’ from Tom Hank’s 1994 Oscar-winning classic Forrest Gump. I may have been influenced by Forrest Gump. But there’s nothing more to it. My film is autobiographical. It is a biopic of sorts and most of it is taken from incidents in my life. The rest is pure fantasy. When Surya sees Sameera Reddy on a train for the first time, he falls in love with her. Being a guy who has never looked at a girl lustfully, he pulls out his guitar and sings En iniya pon nilaave. How do you manage to churn out hit songs with Harris Jayaraj in all your films? Your combo is now being compared to the hit combinations of Mani Ratnam-AR Rahman and Shankar-AR Rahman? I have a terrific rapport with my team — Harris, lyricist Thamarai, editor Antony and art director Rajeevan. They are my core team and at the time of script writing itself, I visualise the songs, taking inputs from them. All these guys are my good friends, and we vibe well. In Vaaranam Aayiram (VM), for the first time, a film of mine will have seven songs. Every song takes the screenplay forward and does not bog down the story. The Adiye Kolluthu song shows 90 days in the life of my hero, a period in which he falls in love. You have a terrific rapport with Surya. We are very good friends, and understand each other. He respects my work. I would say Surya is the most versatile actor in Tamil cinema today. In VA, he is simply terrific in a double role. We needed Surya to go through physical changes in the film. He transformed himself to look like a 17-year-old by going on a crash diet of vegetables and chicken without any salt or garnishing. It's incredible he achieved the look without any make-up. Tell us about your VA heroines. Divya Spandana — She knew exactly what was demanded of her in the script. As Priya, the girl-next-door type character, her performance is brilliant. The kind of help she rendered during the shoot was simply amazing. We were the first film unit to shoot at the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun only because of her contacts. Sameera Reddy — I wanted a character who looks imposing and intimidating, for whom my hero flips his lid. She is heavy built and was apt for the role of Megha. Simran — The hero’s first love Malini. She has a touch of grace and aristocracy, exactly the character I have in mind. Simran is very good in the film and has also dubbed in her own voice. In real life, are you a romantic person. You have been linked to all your heroines, right from Reema Sen, to many others including Abhirami, for whom the grapevine has it that you built a house in Hyderabad. (Laughs) My policy is that I don’t mix my personal life with my work. I’m happily married to Preety, my wife. Ours was a love marriage. A Hindu boy marrying a Christian girl, something similar to my Minnale.Reema is a good friend even today, and as far as Abhirami is concerned, I liked her tall dusky looks and cast her as the heroine in my Chennail Oru Mazhaikalam, opposite Surya but somehow, the project did not take off. It is true that I have brought a house in Hyderabad, not for Abhirami but for my family to stay when we shoot in Hyderabad. As far as women are concerned, I like to talk to them and spend time with them but it does not go beyond that. I occasionally party and I don’t see anything wrong in it. What’s next on your agenda? A film for Sivaji Productions with Ajit as hero. The shoot will start from November 1. And next April, I will be doing a film with Mahesh Babu in Telugu.
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