Some fans consider their idols as gods. This is true for Rajinikanth and Kamal Hassan fans, if not for others. Director Ramu Chellappa has made this the plot of his debut film Engitta Modathey. He earlier assisted in Pasanga (2009), Vamsam (2010), Mayakkam Enna (2011) and Kedi Billa Killadi Ranga (2013). Ramu decided to become a director while attending a workshop by a team, ‘Nizhal’. “I would spend all my time reading. When I attended this workshop in 2005, I knew I had to do something related. I moved to Chennai and assisted Pandiaraj and Selvaraghavan before turning director,” he says.
The self-confessed Rajini fan who also likes Kamal, says that when Subramaniapuram (2008) was released, he wanted to make a film set in the 80s and that’s how Engitta Modathey happened. “The film is set in 1987 and it’s about Kamal and Rajini fans. It revolves around a cut-out artist who is a fan of Rajinikanth,” he says. The film stars Natarajan Subramanian (Natty) and Rajaji in the lead paired with Sanchita Shetty and Parvathi Nair.
Ramu also researched the fan culture in the 80s. “The colours, camera and look of people were different and we recreated it in the set in Tirunelveli. For shots of a theatre, we chose one in Anakaputhur (Chennai), as they had a projector. The film was shot in 45 days,” he says, adding that Soundharya Rajinikanth, who shares the story with the Superstar, praised the story. The film, awaiting a certificate from the censor board, will be released after the elections.