A photographer of Madurai, R. Asaithambi, 75, is a man filled with pride and satisfaction. It was his nocturnal efforts of 1977-78 that made some 32 sets of black-and-white photographs that helped Vijayaraj launch himself into Kollywood and subsequently leave a stamp as ‘Captain’ Vijayakant.
Vijayaraj who wanted to take a plunge into film industry got inspiration when one of the Madurai-based producers threw a challenge by inviting local youths to act in cinema. He also introduced Vijayaraj to Mr. Asaithambi and asked him to come with good photographers to get a call to act in movies.
Vijayaraj would go through Hollywood and local cinema magazines and prepare himself for particular action postures. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“I took it as a challenge to get the best stills for Vijayaraj so that it would serve him as a passport to enter the film industry,” Mr. Asaithambi said. Those were the days when cinema aspirants could impress producers and directors only with stills to get a call for audition.
With his studio being busy throughout the day with seven employees working for him, Mr. Asaithmabi asked Vijayaraj to come late in the night. “Since, he was working in his father’s rice mill, I asked him to take rest for two hours to look better for photos. We used to rehearse and then shoot till 5 a.m.,” he said recalling those days.
Vijayaraj would go through Hollywood and local cinema magazines and prepare himself for particular action postures. “He always wanted to become an action hero like Rajinikanth. He used to rehearse before a huge mirror at the studio and then get ready for the shoot. Since, the photo films were costly in those days, we used to be very choosy,” Mr. Asaithambi said.
After the shoot every day, the films were developed and printed so that he could make necessary corrections. After 41 days of shoot, Mr. Asaithambi gave Vijayaraj 32 sets of photographs with which he left for Chennai.
“On days, when he could not pay me, I had told him not to bother about money. All that I wanted was to be a catalyst for a Madurai man to get into the film industry,” Mr. Asaithambi said. Besides, he was also expecting a favour from the producer who was also running an engineering college. “I thought, I could get my to-be children educated in that college,” he added.
Though he never wanted the pending dues after Vijayaraj attained stardom, Mr. Asaithambi said he made more than that by using Vijayakanth’s photographs in his studio. “The fact that my studio was instrumental in launching Captain, helped my business flourish,” he added.
Mr. Asaithambi said Vijayakanth could have done much more for the people as a politician if he had been in the pink of health.
