Love and laughter

Director Pandiraj and actor Sivakarthikeyan share their “Marina” experience In Director Pandiraj's new film “Marina”, the love story between Senthilnathan and Sopana Sundari is truly funny. His first film, the award-winning “Pasanga” that highlighted relationships between children also had a love story of a nursery school teacher, whom the hero lovingly calls, Sevappukkani (as she falls asleep in her classes and her eyes are always red!). In “Vamsam” too, there is beautiful romance between the feisty Malarkodi and the timid Kishore. A cow named Asin is cupid! In all his three films, the love tracks are novel and endearing. Because his fans loved the romantic interludes, and wanted more, his next film is going to be a full-length romantic comedy. “It's a safe bet to travel in a space you are familiar with and present it in an engaging way,” Pandiraj says. “I observe life as it unfolds in front of me. My films reflect the values that have inspired me. All my dialogues are real, taken from people whom I have met.” Pandiaraj prefers familiar themes — “Pasanga” is drawn from his childhood in his native town of Pudukottai; “Vamsam” presents the festive fervour of making pongal, the kaeda vettu and the clash of the clans — things he grew up with. However, his new film “Marina” is different. It records life at the beach, which he observed over a period of five months. The hero is the beach and the innumerable lives it supports — especially, the children, who sell pattani and sundal. “Like there is in my other films, “Marina” also has a subtle message on children's education, against child labour and the beauty of relationships. The idea I want to convey is that no one is an orphan,” says the director. In Telugu The film is being dubbed in Telugu as “Marina— Beach” by SVR Media and will release shortly. The landmark beach has a fan following among youngsters and families. It enthrals them. “That's the reason why the film is drawing people to the theatres,” he smiles. The film has received a good opening and he is happy. “Marina” is shot in a documentary style on the lines of world cinema, a departure from the popular film-making style. There is no thrill or masala element. It simply weaves several small stories, like flowers strung in a garland. Appreciation for such small budget films is heartening, he says. “As there were no takers, we released the film on our own. This is the way forward for the many small-budget films lying in the cans for want of distributors. This also builds the confidence of new film-makers who want to experiment. What the discerning audience looks for is a new experience.” He says films can be made with as little as Rs.2.5 crore. “This is a healthy trend. It is safe for producers, distributors and directors. Many big budget films tend to flop. Some may win awards, but fail commercially. Films such as ‘Kalavaani' and ‘Engeyum Eppodhum', are refreshing, have unknown faces and they work.” The hero speaks As a TV host, Sivakarthikeyan keeps the audience in splits with his terrific sense of humour. In Marina, as the hero, he manages to do the same and is winning appreciation. “Humour is my strength. I want to play a variety of roles, but with underlying humour.” He says Marina was challenging. Especially, shooting under the hot sun all day at the beach. “Even with big umbrellas, the heat was a killer. The tan still refuses to go after a number of bleaches and facials,” he laughs. The actors had to get frequent touch-up as the make-up would wear off because of the heat. They had to be quick with costume changes too. “Managing the crowd without using any mike was difficult. And, the sound of the waves was overwhelming.” As for the preparation of the role, he listened to the director. “Pandiraj etches out his characters beautifully. He explains the mood and gets the best out of us. He also restrains us from going overboard with the emotions. Most of the shots were tight frames that relied on the strength of controlled expressions, of course, loaded with humour.” Sivakarthikeyan wants to play entertaining roles. His next film “Manam Kothi Paravai”, directed by Ezhil (who made films like “Thulladha Manamum Thullum”, “Poovellam Un Vaasam” and “Deepavali”), is a beautiful village love story. “Even today in villages, youngsters who are in love are scared of their parents. They meet secretly without the parents' knowledge and face hurdles. It deals with such issues with humour.” The film is slated for a summer release. The actor lived the village life during the shooting of the film in his native place near Karaikal. “We also shot at Munnar. It was a chilling experience to shoot at two in the morning where there was a risk of wild elephants dropping in,” he says. He has been roped in to bring in the laughs in Aishwarya Dhanush's “3”, where Dhanush plays the lead. “It was Dhanush who sent me the first congratulatory message for Marina.”