Sasikumar Interview: “Only after introducing 10 directors, I’ll get back to direction”

Actor – director Sasikumar is all set to have his 3rd release as a hero this year with Kidaari, which opens this Friday. Directed by newcomer Prasath Murugesan and co-starring Nikhila and many other support characters, Kidaari was recently censored with a U/A. In this chat with Kaushik LM, Sasikumar was in an expressive mood and opened up.

You are known for your authentic rural films, ever since your debut. But according to you, which directors had that authentic ‘mann vaasanai’ in their films?

“There are a lot of directors before me, Bharathiraja sir mainly. He took Tamil cinema to the villages. Balachander sir also showed authentic rural touches with ‘Thanneer Thanneer‘. We saw all that and came into the field.”

But of late, only you seem to be playing in this field …

“(Laughs) OK, at least I’ll be an authority in village films. They’ve accepted me and the business factor is also there. Even after an under-performing film, the rural audience and trade have that belief in me. My hold in B & C centers is solid.”

Though your previous release Vetrivel wasn’t received that well in theaters, it has been recognized as a decent film by the audience who have seen it through other means. Did its theatrical performance disappoint you?

“It could have done better for sure. The release was preponed by a week and that impacted the business. It was also the time of the elections. Though the producers did good promotions, the audiences need good time and space to be ready to consume a film. Just 5 days wasn’t enough. Still, the family audiences accepted the film and the satellite rights have also gone for a good price, due to the family factor.

Vetrivel was anyway a lesson in that aspect; preponing its release was a mistake. Time is needed to prepare the audience for a film’s release. For Kidaari, we launched a whopping 7 teasers, all related to the story. 3 more are there actually (laughs).”

Kidaari seems to be on the violent side? Village films generally fall in this bloody space … 

“Vetrivel didn’t have violence. Among my films, after Subramaniapuram and Kutti Puli, Kidaari will have violence. It’s about how you convey things. A small child can be fed food in either a loving manner or by scaring it. In Kidaari, the message against violence will be conveyed in a violent manner. But, violence is all around us nowadays, even within the family. I see it all over newspapers and in TV channels. We have even started eating while seeing such visuals.

Coming back to Kidaari, you can expect what you generally do in my films. It will have lots of characters and they will stay in memory, rather than the actors who have played it. Kidaari will have entertainment, good songs and new sounds in the rerecording.”

How did you pin first-time composer Darbuka Siva? His music sounds so fresh …

“His music sounded fresh and different. The director had already extracted 6 songs from him in the 3 months gap when the film was pushed a bit. I listened to them and liked all of them. They are all situation-based numbers. Director Gautham sir also commented that the sounds were so different.”

The presence of Nikhila again in your film is a striking aspect …

“Her character was very silent in Vetrivel, but in Kidaari she plays a naughty girl named Chemba. We were actually looking for a new face but felt that she would be apt. Our portions would have nativity, romance (not the vulgar kind) and even our intimacy will feel nice. The way they meet in a ‘thiruvizha’, communicate with their eyes, talk and move within the family have been shown well, in line with the film’s period.”

Finally, what next?

“It will be with a new director again, my 7th introduction. I want to introduce at least 10 directors and then only get back to direction.”, signs off Sasikumar on a cheerful note.

Interviewed by Kaushik LM

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