'I have made good film in Ivan Veramathiri'

M Saravanan became a name to reckon with in Tamil cinema with his well crafted Tamil film Engeyum Eppothum made for A R Murugadoss and Fox Star Studios. It was the first Tamil production by Fox Star Studios.

His second film is Ivan Veramathiri (He is different) for UTV.

The young filmmaker talks about this action thriller starring Vikram Prabhu, Ganesh Venkataraman, Vamsi and Surabhi.

Your first film Engeyum Eppothum was an unexpected hit and did well. Much is expected of your second film. Are you nervous?

Not at all. I think I have made a good film. But Ivan Veramathiri is totally different from Engeyum Eppothum.

I remember you telling me that the inspiration behind Engeyum Eppothum was a road accident you witnessed once. How did the idea of this film come up?

I always get inspired by real life incidents. The idea behind this film also is from a small incident that happened in our country.

I thought how would it be if I looked at it from a different perspective?

I do not want to give details about what incident inspired me as that would give away the story! 

The title Ivan Veramathiri means he is different. How different is he?

He is different from all of us. I feel every citizen has a responsibility towards the society but what all of us do is, we get angry about many things, discuss them and then forget about them.

We also believe that our problems should be solved by politicians, bureaucrats or the police and not us.

But here is an ordinary guy who takes responsibility for solving a problem. That is why he is different.

In films like Indian, Anniyan, etc. also ordinary guys take up issues and solve them.

The men in the films you have mentioned are driven by personal reasons and they had something to gain personally.

This guy has nothing personal to gain by solving the problem. He is just an ordinary guy like us but reacts differently to an issue.

Is the issue political?

It is a very small issue which we generally discuss and forget. Yes, there is a politician in the film.

What is more important in the film is the journey of four people—the hero, the villain, a police officer and a girl.

Last time we spoke, you said you believed in giving a message through your films. Is there a message in this film too?

Definitely. I strongly believe that all stories should have a message for the people.

What is the point in making people watch a film when you don't have any good message to convey?

The message need not be big; it can even be about loving someone.

Why did you choose Vikram Prabhu for the lead role? His first film was Kumki which was quite different and unusual.

I had written this script for Arya. That was because when I had committed to directing this film for the Thirupathy Brothers, they said they had signed Arya for the movie.

But Arya was not impressed with the script. That was when we decided on Vikram Prabhu.

In fact, I signed him before Kumki got released. I felt he was ideal as an action hero taking into account his physique and height. He is Gunasekharan in the film.

Another important character is Aravindan, a police officer. We thought of many actors but finally we decided on Ganesh Venkataraman.

Was it because of the role he did in Unnaipol Iruvan?

That was one of the reasons. He was quite impressive as a police officer in Unnaipol Oruvan.

In this film he is not there from the beginning till the end, but when you come out of the theatre, you feel he was there throughout the film.

The villain is Vamsi.

So, you have a typical villain in this film. In Engeyum Eppothum, there was no villain; the accident was the villain...

True. This film is the story of a hero and a villain. You will not have seen a better villain than Vamsi in any of the films released this year.

Your characters in your last film were realistic; are they more black and white in this film?

Yes, the situations in this film are more cinematic and a bit exaggerated, and there is more drama in this film.

I decided to make it this way as I felt the script needed that treatment.

What is the role of the female protagonist in the film?

Usually in an action thriller, the heroine is just the love interest. But that is not so in this film.

I have deliberately made her role very important. In the first half, you may see her only as the love interest, but in the second half she (Malini) becomes an integral part of the story.

The story travels through five important characters and one of them is the heroine. 

Where have you set the film?

The entire story happens in Chennai. I really struggled hard to shoot the film in the city without people noticing that we were shooting a film.

 One very important scene happens in an under-construction building and I am sure those scenes will thrill the audience. It took me six months to locate the building.

How far have you travelled from your first film?

If you see both films, you will not say that they are directed by the same person. The films are totally different.

I hope I have made a good film, and that the audience will enjoy it like they enjoyed Engeyum Eppothum.