His fan following might be small but the value of the messages he intends to present to society through his films are certainly big. That, in fact, is what sets director Pandiraj apart from the rest.
Says the man, whose first film ‘Pasanga’ helped audience gain an insight into the innocent world of children, “After ‘Pasanga’ and ‘Vamsam’, I wanted to make a movie that would be a pleasant, feel-good entertainer. As this movie is based on the characters that visit the Marina beach, I have titled it ‘Marina’.”
So, will this movie also focus on children? Replies Pandiraj with a smile, “It will focus on a number of characters, some of which are children. The movie will revolve around characters that one generally finds at the Marina and that includes a couple in love, those looking to go on horse rides, family members, beggars and so on.”
The director continues, “I wanted to relax one evening and went to the Marina. I was there for a while, observing and interacting with those present there and it was then that this idea of making a movie on the characters that I had met at the beach struck me.”
But what was so interesting about the beach that inspired him to make a film?
“Each and every person you find on the beach has an interesting story to tell - from the mad man who runs around trying to sell government land to the beggars trying to make a living. For instance, one beggar who spoke to me said that he was begging on the Marina to exact revenge on his son and daughter-in- law.”
The movie has well known television artiste and VJ Sivakarthikeyan playing the lead along with Oviya, of ‘Kalavani’ fame.
“Oviya plays the role of a girl in love with Sivakarthikeyan, an employee in a private firm. Marina is an out-and-out fun film that will make you laugh.”
Pandiraj has never hesitated to introduce newcomers to the industry. In this film too, he seems to have done that. He says, “I have introduced around 50 newcomers in this film. More importantly, the music for my film has been composed by first-timer Girish, a disciple of Lalgudi Jayaraman. Girish has done the re-recording for several short films shot in London.”
Finally, every film of his has a message. What message does ‘Marina’ have?
Pandirajan says, “Every one of us is blessed and special. It is just that we don’t realise how much God has given us. ‘Marina’, apart from giving the audience a good laugh, will make each one realize how blessed and fortunate they really are.”
