Lingusamy’s much awaited multistarrer, ‘Vettai’, with Madhavan, Arya, Sameera Reddy and Amala Paul has been creating a buzz over the last few weeks. But that’s not the only reason the director is working round the clock.
While ‘Vettai’ is likely to hit theatres on December 23, news has it that Lingusamy plans to remake the film in Bollywood, under his own production house, Tirupati Brothers.
The director opens up on his choice of cast and his viewing preference:
I generally come up with ideas while traveling. I write most of my scripts when I travel. But ‘Vettai’ is different. The script was inspired by a story that my mother used to narrate when I was young.
‘Vettai’ is the story of two brothers. Madhavan plays the older brother, a lazy and timid cop, while the younger brother, played by Arya, is the brave one. Sameera Reddy and Amala Paul are sisters and star opposite the brothers. I had approached Vijay as well as Simbu (Silambarasan) for the two roles, but due to clash of dates, Arya was taken in. Similarly, Tamanna and then Anushka were approached to play the two sisters, but it did not work out. Much of the movie was shot in Tamil Nadu, in Karaikudi and Thuthukudi.
I am particular about the films I watch. I love ‘Duel’ (1971) by Steven Spielberg, ‘Bicycle Thieves’ (1948) by Vittorio De Sica, ‘The Road Home’ (2000) by Yimou Zhang and ‘The Godfather’ (1972) by Francis Ford Coppola. I watch movies during my free time and cannot imagine doing anything else.
I wish I could make movies like ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ (1995) and ‘Sholay’ (1975). They are classics. After ‘Vettai’, I would be working on Balaji Shaktivel’s ‘Vazhakku Enn 18/9’ and Prabhu Solomon’s ‘Kumki’, another venture under my own banner along with UTV.
I analyse the films I watch. I loved the first half of ‘Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa’ but didn’t like the second half. I told Gautam Vasudevan Menon about it.
On actors: I am a big fan of Anushka Shetty. Somehow, I never got to work with her. I wanted her to act in ‘Vettai’ but that just did not work. In Bollywood, it would be Aamir Khan. He is a wonderful actor.