Caarthick Raju maybe making his directorial debut with forthcoming action-comedy “Thirudan Police”, but he isn’t a newcomer to the industry. With over a decade of experience in the visual effects and computer graphics department, Caarthick decided to wield the megaphone to do something more creative. In this candid chat, he opens up to Only Kollywood about Thirudan Police, which he describes as a project “close to the heart”.
Excerpts from the interview
Is your film’s title inspired by the popular children’s game? Tell me more about the film?
What inspired you to weave a father-son story in a thriller? You could’ve safely made a comedy with a lot of drama
The inspiration came from one of the stories my father had written. A teacher walks into a classroom to find the children happily laughing about something. When he inquires about the reason, one student tells him that his father has gone on an official trip. The surprised teacher asks him what’s there to be so happy about it. There’s nobody now at home to nag me to do my homework or read. Mom gets angry occasionally but she seldom translates it physically. But my father is the exact opposite and wouldn’t miss an opportunity to get physical with me. How can I like such a father, the student asks? The teacher tells the class that most of you misunderstood your fathers. All of you should
The father-son relationship in our films has always been very melodramatic. How have you handled that on screen?
You wouldn’t find an overdose of drama. I can guarantee it. Moreover, the father-son bond is explored at some important instances and not on a full-length basis. We’ve made this film as a tribute to all fathers. In the credits, we came up with this idea of having pictures of all the technicians and actors with their fathers. We end the film with an emotional song as a tribute to fathers. I decided that featuring photographs of the technicians with their father will be a great idea. I also wanted to include a picture with my father, but that’s when I realized I don’t actually have a picture with him. I had group picture but not a single one with just my father and I. Even most of my team members didn’t have a separate picture with their fathers. We collected all their photos, cut them using Photoshop and included in the credits. The idea was to reiterate that we have time to click selfies with friends but never do we even think of clicking a picture with our fathers. The film is mostly funny but it will leave you with a thought, which I think audiences will realize after they go home.
How did Dinesh come into the project? He played a blind character in his last film, contrary to the police constable role in your film.
He had committed to Thirudan Police even before he started shooting for Cuckoo. I felt Dinesh was most apt for the film because his attitude is best suited for the script. Nobody else would look best in the role of a police constable. We all remember police inspectors and commissioners, but rarely does anyone remember a constable. That’s why I felt I should cast someone whose face audiences are not familiar with. The film’s
You come from a graphics department with zero experience in filmmaking. How challenging was the writing process?
I started writing while I was working as a computer graphic supervisor. I would usually write in the nights after I come back home from work. Cameraman Velraj (director of VIP) is a very close friend. I can even call him my brother. He guided me in this journey. He directed me to the right persons in the industry to find opportunities. Even he wanted me to assist some director before thinking of making my own film, but
What was most challenging in this whole process?
I didn’t find anything challenging. While I admit not assisting to any director was a drawback, but I somehow managed to make my film. My computer graphic background came in very handy while shooting the songs. If I have to point out something challenging, it would be to make Dinesh come out of Cuckoo zone. We started shooting Thirudan Police four days after Cuckoo was wrapped up. Every time I’d say action, Dinesh’s eyes would automatically go in because he still couldn’t come out of the blind character. It took us a few days to get him out of that zone.