The beauty of the town of Puducherry, with its captivating French flavour and complementing Tamil culture, is perhaps a known fact. But when this fact is affirmed by a movie director of the pedigree of Ang Lee, it is hard to disagree.
“Not to discredit our cinematographer, but I used to joke in the sets that you could drop your camera and hit the switch and everything would look beautiful; in a very special and modest way. I am sure that the writer of the book (Life of Pi), Yann Martel, had good reasons, of all India, in choosing this town,” he charmingly told a press conference on Monday, indicating an honest appraisal of a place that he had spent shooting in the last one month.
Winner of two Oscars and recognised as one of the best directors to emerge in the 20th century, Lee's handling of complex human emotions is world-acclaimed. Whether it was the homoerotic theme portrayed in the love between two Wyoming ranchers in ‘Brokeback Mountain', or the romantic drama ‘Sense and Sensibility', which weaved together tales of disappointment and the eventual triumph of love; Mr. Lee has held audiences spellbound with his creations.
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Like many of his earlier adaptations, Mr. Lee said he had tried to make ‘Life of Pi' – the fictional tale of the son of a zoo-keeper from Puducherry who gets trapped in the Pacific Ocean with four animals – “as realistic as possible.” The book narrates the boy's ordeals and his indomitable spirit that helps him survive 227 days in the rough seas.
For the first time, Mr. Lee would be handling the 3D technology to take the book closer to the audience and recreate the drama which earned the writer a ‘Man Booker Prize' in 2002.
He said that with the “blessings of the writer,” he had added some characters to the story. The movie would feature artists Tabu and Irfan Khan, both of whom won the Padma Shri this year.
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“Great actors”
Calling them “great actors”, Mr. Lee said the moment he decided to make the movie, Tabu and Irfan were obvious choices. For the role of the protagonist though, an extensive worldwide talent search was held and Suraj Sharma, a 17-year-old boy from Delhi was cast in the role.
“I wanted somebody fresh and not from the industry. Suraj is a true talent who is gathering his experience with this training and shooting. He is someone whom the camera likes. He is a real deal but we should wait to see how people take him,” he said.
The movie was shot in several places across the town including the Botanical gardens, Holy Rosary Church, Petit Seminaire and Calve College schools and several canals.
Mr. Lee said that almost one-third of the screen time will be occupied by shots from Puducherry. The scenes set in the ocean will be shot in Taiwan.