CHENNAI: Tamil filmmakers are looking to push boundaries in every possible manner and standing testimony to this is director Sudhakar Shanmugam’s film Peiyena Peiyum Kurudhi, in which the hero appears for just 15 seconds.
Yes, you read that right! Talking to City Express about his film, Sudhakar, a first-time filmmaker, says, “Peiyena Peiyum Kurudhi is a black comedy thriller. I have penned the screenplay in such a way that my hero’s character will be talked about through the film but the hero himself will appear for only 15 seconds.”
But that isn’t the only speciality of Sudhakar’s film. “I have attempted to introduce 50 newcomers through my film, which won’t have even a single female character. However, the film will have romance,” he says with a grin. He quickly adds, “The romance will be between a man and a woman.”
Sudhakar, a journalist before turning filmmaker, says he was always interested in films. “I tried to learn filmmaking through a correspondence course but then became a journalist. It was the film Paranormal Activity that gave me the confidence that I could make a film on a shoestring budget. I came up with a story on the concept of the Big Bang Theory and readied a script with just two characters in it. However, I realised I wouldn’t be able to reach out to the masses with this type of film. So I decided to opt for another unique story.”
While wondering about making a film that would be unique, he recalled the impact the lines of Kalingathu Bharani had on him. Its a 12th Century Tamil poem and war song by Jayamkondar, celebrating the victory of Kulottunga Chola I over the Kalinga king, Anantavarman Chodaganga in the Chola-Kalinga war. Sudhakar says the poem was so well written that you could actually feel the intensity of the war without even seeing it. “That’s what made me want to showcase violence without showing bloodshed,” says the director, adding that his film is almost ready. “We have just a little bit of work left and if all goes well, we will release it this month or in April.”