His repertoire of movies is such that names like stylish and flamboyant sit easily on his shoulders. He takes after Hitchcock in that he is known to essay a cameo in all of his movies. Director KS Ravikumar’s last film Lingaa with superstar Rajinikanth did set him back a bit but he is back and this time to direct a Tamil-Kannada bilingual, Mudinja Ivana Pudi (in Tamil) and Kotigobba 2 (in Kannada), a first for Ravikumar.
The movie is also a first for Kannada star Sudeep, who will be making his debut as a hero in a Tamil film. The 27-second teaser show Sudeep in a stylish avatar, fighting with the enemies, but does not reveal anything beyond that. In his assuring self, the director says the audience can expect all the commercial ingredients expected in his fares, with a liberal dose of comedy, action and, yes, women sentiments.
For the director, the thrill is in the audience coming with an open mind and not saddled by any pre-release expectations. “Keeping the audience on tenterhooks and unleashing the best on the big screen is the mantra which has worked for me. I have a special bond with the mass, knowing a bit of their pulse who will not give any quarter should the quality be a casualty.”
Far from deeming it as a horror flick as the media made it out to be initially, Ravikumar says he owes it to director Soorappa Babu and actor Sudeep for the patience to wait till Lingaa saw the light of the day.
A bilingual for the first time in his career, Ravikumar says the key factor was in Sudeep exhibiting his keenness to do the Tamil version too. Retaining Nithya Menon in both languages was in tune with the versatility of the actress, slipping into the characters with stunning ease.
With the tag of Minimum Guarantee director, Ravikumar says his latest one is every inch an original idea. Not perturbed by the last-minute delays in the release of his movies by happenings not in his hands, he says in candid humour that when some seek legal counsel, accusing filmmakers of lifting stories, even the judges are not impressed by such allegations.
For Ravikumar, the inspiration stems from his personal experience. Like for instance, the director injected the mannerisms of his father in a certain character (villager) that he played in the movie Nattamai (village chief) and directed by him. Nattamai shot his career graph to a level matched only by the buoyant success of the 1999 Padayappa.
Love subjects do not have a place in Ravikumar’s preference, save for only Manmadha Ambu. For him, playing safe is of paramount importance, which the luxury of a commercial entertainer gives him. “An average fan is not bothered about the statistics of what is the director’s success and failure equation when he hits the theatres,” he says.
Ravikumar prefers to don the thinking cap and not leave it to the artistes at the take. “In addition to the director’s suggestion, Kamal Haasan will add a bit of his interpretation to a role whereas Rajini is a director’s actor,” he says. Speaking of Rajini brings to mind Lingaa. “The script was slightly out of tune with my kind of films and not due to the rush with which the movie was completed. There was also the law of average factor. I guess Rajini and I were due for a failure.”
Whether failure or success, Ravikumar takes both in his stride, having carved a niche for himself with his no-nonsense approach and also for placing the interest of the producer above himself.