Sometimes, inspiration can strike in the unlikeliest of places — like an old book market!
About eight years ago, when director ‘Poo’ Sasi was sifting through used titles in Triplicane, someone dropped off a fresh batch of newspapers. A single page slid out, and caught Sasi’s eye, almost like what happens in the movies. An article on that page is the inspiration for Pichaikaaran , which releases today.
The film, starring composer Vijay Antony (also the film’s producer) and Satna Titus, in the lead, is about a person’s determination to succeed.
Sasi has been active as a director for 18 years now, but has made only a clutch of films. That’s because, unless a subject appeals enough to compel him to convert it into a film, he does not.
“I’ve never imposed conditions on myself — that I have to make a movie a year, or take up a project because there’s a willing producer and actor. I’m happy with the pace at which I work. Once I decide on an idea, I keep chiselling away at it, till I’m satisfied. The same logic applies to Pichaikaaran too,” he says.
Speaking about Vijay Antony (with whom he collaborated once before for Dishyum’s music), Sasi says that compared to his previous films ( Naan, Salim and India Pakistan ), Vijay has matured as an actor.
“I’m a director who steps in only if an actor is doing something wrong; I don’t interfere with the acting process. Vijay’s been very conscientious about his work, and given his best.”
However much he works, and despite the other films he’s done, Poo , Sasi’s fifth film that he made in 2008, is his calling card; it’s even attached itself to his name. The film, about a girl’s intense love for her cousin, and her coming to terms with marriage to someone else, touched many hearts.
“I’m very proud of Poo . That film is the reason I wanted to enter films. I wanted to show people how tender a girl’s heart can be; how pure her love. And, if I make at least four other films like that, I think I would have fulfilled the purpose of my existence,” he says.
Published - February 18, 2016 07:34 pm IST
