Ramesh and Kamal Go Back to the Eighth Century
Ramesh Arvind has reasons to celebrate. After the first look of his film Uthama Villain starring Kamal Haasan created a lot of buzz, he is ecstatic shooting the eighth century portion of the film in Chennai.
“There are two sections in the film. One is the 21st century, which is finished and now the eighth century portions are being completed,” he says.
Ramesh is glad with the way the shoot is progressing and states that the overall experience has been terrific. “With Uthama Villain being a one-of-its-kind project, there is a lot of technical work happening but it is worth it,” says the director.
According to Ramesh, he has just gone by the storyboard and has not come across a situation where he had to make last minute changes. “We took one year to discuss the film and now it is a race to finish. This happens mainly because a lot of discussions happen in these kind of films during pre-production, which is rare in today’s industry. Right now everything is set; it is only execution,” he says.
Having found bliss in the script written by Kamal, the director states that while the first half was interesting, the challenge lay in the second half. “There will be a lot of work that will happen now. We will be working day in and day out,” he says.
Uthama Villain is on a worldwide run with the team going from Bangalore to Turkey to Madhya Pradesh and back to Bangalore to finally finish in Chennai. “I have not seen Kamal taking rest for even a day. He is on the run all the time. Luckily both our working styles match which is very important. As a team we have never given up on the energy,” says the director.
Though Ramesh has directed a few films, this time around he is glad to make a film that is just what he visualised. “There is no change in my direction but previously, I did not have these kind of resources and people. We tend to get handicapped in marketing our films because there is constraint in the budget. This time, resources are better and I am happy,” he says.
It is a known fact that Kamal and Ramesh Aravind are good friends for many years now. But ask him the one thing about Kamal which he admires and he says, “He is loaded with talent and always surprises you with his act. With this film, I noticed his sense of Tamil and the way he has a hold over his language.”
The director, who is doing a cameo in the film, doesn’t want to give away too much and prefers to wait for the release time. “A lot of post-production is to happen. The ultimate thing is marketing the film and I am sure the team has some strategies for the release,” he signs off.