Last week, it was announced that Kanaa-fame Darshan, is all set to headline House Mates next. The film marks the directorial debut of T Raja Vel, who has also written the screenplay. The filmmaker has previously worked as a co-director with director Ajay Gnanamuthu and was a part of the writing team for Demonte Colony 2.
Apart from Darshan, House Mates also stars Kaali Venkat, Arsha Chandini Baiju, Vinodini, Dheena, Abdool Lee, and Master Henrik in prominent roles. Opening up about the film’s storyline, T Raja Vel shares, “After tying the knot, Darshan moves into a new apartment, only to encounter a series of strange incidents. What begins as an unsettling experience soon spirals into a chaotic comedy, entangling both his family and Kaali Venkat’s.
How these two families navigate the madness forms the crux of the film.” The director says that the film gives importance to all characters in the story and not just the lead, which led him to choose Darshan as the protagonist. “I chose Darshan for the film because it is a character-oriented story. If I had chosen a star, I would’ve been forced to make compromises to the script.
Darshan has an innocent, boy-next-door persona which suits the needs of this character. I went with Arsha for the female lead because I needed a fresh face for the character,” he explains. While the first-look poster of House Mates reminded many of the clash between between Harish Kalyan and MS Bhakar’s characters from Parking, Rajavel is confident that this film is not similar to the 2023 film. “It is definitely not a thriller like Parking. I can’t call it a horror film either, because the incidents are only bizarre, not paranormal. I think it is safe to say that this film is a fantasy comedy.”
On the technical front, MS Sathish is the cinematographer for House Mates, while Rajesh Murugesan, who is best known for working in Neram and Premam, has composed the music for this film. The film is produced by S Vijaya Prakash under the Playsmith Studios banner, with director SP Sakthivel co-producing under the South Studios banner.
Currently in post-production, the film is gearing up to hit theatres for the summer holidays. “We chose the summer period because this film is made to cater to family audiences. We want families and children to enjoy this comedy film,” Raja Vel concludes.