He is one filmmaker who redefined Tamil cinema, which was accused of relying heavily on larger-than-life characters and floating themes. ‘Subramaniapuram’ was a cult film which proved low-budget realistic movies, with top-notch narrative quality can draw people to theatres.
The versatile actor-cum-director Sasikumar, who debuts in Mollywood through the Johny Antony movie, ‘Masters’, converses with a gentle tone and says, “‘Masters’ is an action-packed thriller, and I play Milan Paul, a news reporter from Kottayam. The movie is about two friends, played by Prithviraj, a police officer by profession, and myself. How they get together to fight against the injustice they confront around forms the crux of the story. I found the storyline and the approach of the director fresh, so I committed the project.”
Sasikumar, an ardent film buff who keeps a tab on all the new Malayalam releases, says, “The cine-goers of Kerala always appreciate solid movies. It is true that the industry known for its excellent stories churned out some unacceptable films in the past. But, then it was the same scenario everywhere.”
The new wave films, of lesser budget, and good quality, came first in Bollywood, he points out.
“Small is bountiful. In Kollywood, the trend started with the 2004 Balaji Sakthivel movie ‘Kadhal’. Though it started slow in Kerala, the presence of a new bunch of promising directors is evident from the movies like ‘Salt N’ Pepper’, ‘Traffic’ and ‘Chappa Kurishu’.”
Sasikumar has a view that all genres of films have space in the industry because the audience have varying tastes.
He says, “Audience is the decisive factor in the success and failure of a movie. They have the responsibility to accept a good movie.” He says Keralites have always shown a keen interest towards his films and for that he is indebted to the audience of Kerala.
Says the actor, “In fact I have acted in the Johny Antony movie as a tribute to the audience who have always stood with me.” Talking about the success of his movies, especially his first movie ‘Subramaniapuram’ Sasikumar says, “I have a liking for the rustic tales, maybe because of my own rural background.
The acceptance of the movie was an outcome of keen observation and sheer diligence.
We resurrected the Madurai of 70s, keeping an eye on each detail like the black and white film posters of yesteryears, marriage albums and cassettes.” The actor who has proved his mettle in acting and direction says that direction is his passion, and he finds it stressful to handle both tasks together.
Sasikumar who agrees that there is an overdose of violence in his movies like ‘Subramaniapuram’, ‘Nadodigal’, ‘Easan’ and ‘Porali’ says, “But then, life is sometimes like that.
I portray what I see and experience in life.”