While many directors prefer to shoot song sequences of their films abroad, director Thirukumaran is different. “All the songs and sequences in my upcoming film Gethu, which will release this Pongal, have been shot only in India. I feel that places here are more beautiful than the locations abroad. It is just that we don’t know they exist,” he said.
“Another reason why I prefer to shoot in India and not abroad is because the audience can relate to a story if visuals are shot here,” says the director, who quips that he has a unique hobby: hunting for locations.
Says Thirukumaran, with a smile, “I love to explore new places. I would select a theme or an idea and visit all the places associated with it. I would be gone for days and would not take the regular routes most people do. For instance, I once travelled all over the country when I decided I would visit all the places associated with the Ramayana.”
On another occasion, he decided to explore the regions associated with the holy rivers and the Tiruveni Sangamam. “Similarly, I once explored entire Punjab region and travelled for 12 days, randomly choosing villages and towns. It was during this visit that I found several beautiful places, which I went on to use in my first film Maan Karate,” he shares happily.
Maan Karate had two roaring hit songs in Darlingu Dumbakku and Un Viligalil, both shot aesthetically. Were these songs too shot in India? Thirukumaran laughs and says, “Several people have asked me the same question. Yes, they were shot in India. Darlingu Dambakku was shot in village 30 km from Chandigarh, Un Viligalil was shot in Chandigarh itself for eight days.”
Now his film Gethu, which features Udhayanidhi Stalin and Amy Jackson in the lead, too has stunning visuals shot in the country. “If artistes co-operate, it is possible to shoot the entire film in the country,” he adds.