It is not too often when one gets to watch a sci-fi play in Tamil. Chillu, meaning a computer chip in Tamil, set in a distant dystopian future, features members of a section society who rebel against the lack of freedom and privacy in their lives.
Sri Thendal Films, who have produced close to 75 Tamil movies, agreed to produce the ambitious project, Chillu which features quite a few technicians from Tamil cinema. This is the first time the production and distribution firm produced a theatre play. They would be following this play up with another one named Pattanathil Bhootam, a remake of the movie with the same name.
Abishek Joseph, who plays the character Adipodi, a humanoid, said, “I worked with Sri Thendal Films before in Demonte Colony. They were impressed with the story of Chillu. I do not think such an extravagant play has ever been done in Tamil. I agreed to be part of this project because nothing of this scale has been done before in Tamil theatre.”
Dheepa Ramanujam, the director of the play, commended the work put in by the team who, helped create the setting for the futuristic world that Chillu is set in. “We wanted to put on a show that tamil audiences have never seen on stage. I had only close to six weeks before the release of the play. Art director Selva, who worked in Tamil movies like Madarasapattinam (2010) and Purampokku Engira Podhuvudamai (2015), and costume designer Preethi Kanthan, who worked in Viswaroopam (2013), have done stellar work to create the world that Chillu is set in,” she said.
Commenting on the challenge of exploring sci-fi ideas in Tamil, Ramanujam said, “It was a challenge to make Chillu in Tamil. Most of the cast have never worked in Tamil theatre before. Anirudh Joseph had to talk like a humanoid in Tamil, but he is not a native Tamil speaker. I narrated the dialogues in Tamil and the cast listened to it and did their parts.” The film is expected to be premiered in the US later in November.