Director Shiv Mohaa, whose film Zero will hit screens on March 25, comes across as someone who has his priorities in order. No wonder then, everything about his film — right from its title to its supernatural plot — seems to have caught the attention of industry experts and triggered an interest in film buffs.
Talking to City Express, Shiv Mohaa, an engineer-turned-filmmaker out of love for the art of storytelling, says, “Everyone keeps asking me about the title, Zero. There are two reasons. One, many things are going wrong in the world and we wanted to indicate that we need a new beginning. The second reason is that an incident in the film happens at the beginning of the world. How that incident affects a couple now is the main plot.”
Those who have watched the film’s trailers are certain that the film, featuring Ashwin and Sshivada in the lead, will be one-of-a-kind. Shiv Mohaa agrees, and adds. “This film is a fresh and bold attempt. You can’t compare it to any other film. It is of a new genre. You could call it a supernatural romantic thriller,” he says.
Although the film is a supernatural thriller, it will not have any of the horror elements that one generally associates with scary films, including blood. and gore “We have tried to avoid all horror elements like jumpscare. Of the three elements, romance will dominate the film,” says the director, adding that his film has been treated like a psychological thriller.
Mohaa, who first made two films, Akku and Kulir 1000, before choosing to enrol for a filmmaking course at Loyola College under editor Lenin, says it was in this college that he met the team that made this film.
“My production designer Raja Mohan, editor Sudarshan and assistant director Shivaramakrishnan were my classmates at Loyola. I met my cameraman Babu Kumar while making Kulir 1000,” says the director, disclosing that after completing the course, he worked on Dhanush-starrer Maryaan (2013).
“Later, I met a producer and narrated the story. He liked it and we started making the movie,” says Mohaa who says the inspiration for this plot did not come from just one incident.
“I’m an avid reader, and even as a child, I’d read a lot. While reading a holy book, I came across an incident of a legend, and this had a profound impact on me. So, while writing the script, I wanted to create awareness (without being preachy) that such an incident took place long ago and also suggest that the time is right for it to happen again,” says the director. “It has many components. But one idea the film will look to convey, apart from other things, is that society needs philosophers to lead.”