It is not often that a 2-film-old director gets to helm a Rajinikanth film. It is rarer for that film to be politically charged and discuss topics that aren’t usually part of a Rajinikanth-starrer. However, with Kabali, director Pa Ranjith achieved the rare feat, and delivered a success that paved the way for the bigger and even more politically strong, Kaala. At the Thangalaan audio launch in Chennai, Ranjith spoke about the path that brought him from Attakathi to Thangalaan, and it was impossible to delve into it without a mention of the Superstar.
While tracing the steps from narrating Attakathi to producer CV Kumar and then going on to make Thangalaan, his biggest film to date, Ranjith said, “Attakathi connected with the audience, and it gave me the belief that people will accept a story about my life. These were stories that were never properly shown on screen, and a reason why I became part of cinema was to tell such stories in the mainstream. This acceptance of Attakathi made me do Madras.”
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Ranjith asserted that Madras is about the oppressed, and is a film made from the Dalit perspective, and he gave Karthi and producer Gnanavel Raja the clarity about vision and won their confidence. “They understood it, and gave me a commercial platform. Kabali happened mainly because Rajinikanth sir liked Madras. In fact, I was initially skeptical about working with him, but he accepted Kabali only because he liked my politics. Then, Kaala happened with Rajinikanth sir again, and then Sarpatta Parambarai, Natchathiram Nagargiradhu, and Dhammam. And now, with Thangalaan, I am continuing in my pursuit of my place in history,” said the filmmaker, who is reuniting with his Attakathi star Dinesh in his next, which will also star Arya.
Pa Ranjith on why cinema is a search for his place in history.
Thangalaan, starring Vikram, Parvathy, Malavika Mohanan, Pasupathy, and Daniel Caltagirone, is set to hit the screens on August 15. It will be clashing at the box-office with multiple films, including Demonte Colony 2, Stree 2, and Vedaa.
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