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'Vikram and Surya are friends. Why should I look to other artistes then?'
Pitamahan will be a new experience for filmgoers, promises Bala
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After the highly successful Sethu starring Vikram, a lot was expected from Bala's next film Nanda.
He didn't disappoint.
If
Sethu gave a new lease of life to Vikram who was doing insignificant roles in the Tamil film industry for ten years, Nanda showed what a good actor Surya was. With these two films, both actors were catapulted into the big league.
Who would Bala cast in his next film was a question being asked by many. Bala did surprise many by casting both Vikram and Surya in his new film
Pithamahan.
The film was launched with much fanfare recently with Vikram and Surya attending the launch. Pithamahan will go on the floors in January and will have a May release.
Shobha Warrier spoke to Bala. Excerpts from the exclusive interview:
You have surprised many by casting the heroes of your earlier films for Pithamahan. Any particular reason for having both of them in the film?
No, just that both are great assets to me. But I can say confidently that you have not seen such characters in Tamil cinema before. It will be a new experience for filmgoers. Pithamahan is roughly translated as patriarch.
It is not about the usual friendship and hatred between two male protagonists that you have seen till now.
After Ilayaraja agreed to do the background score, I decided to go ahead with this film. I don't know what I would have done if he hadn't said yes.
Does that mean music is very important in the film?
Music is the most important ingredient of the film. Remember, I am talking about the background score.
Both Sethu and Nanda depicted the dark side of life. Will Pithamahan also follow the same path?
I cannot make a film without depicting the darker side of life. Pithamahan will be a realistic film, too.
Both your earlier films were successes, both commercially and artistically. Now, people expect a lot from your third film. Does that put a lot of pressure on you?
I don't think about such expectations. So there is absolutely no pressure at all. I don't look at Vikram and Surya as big heroes. They are just two artistes.
When I have two such good friends, why should I think of casting other artistes? Also, other actors are hesitant about signing a two-hero subject. They start thinking about billing, mileage, etc, but I was confident that both Vikram and Surya would have full confidence in me.
I didn't have to do any explaining to these two. They never asked me about the length or importance of their roles.
Of late, experimental films are doing quite well in Tamil Nadu. Do you think the taste of the Tamil audience is changing?
The taste of the Tamil audience has always been very good. The only problem is that filmmakers were not giving them good films. Rarely do you get to see good films which are accepted wholeheartedly by the audience.