CHENNAI : Aishwarya Rajesh’s next, titled Valaiyam, helmed by debutant Mano Bharathi, went on floors on Saturday. The film, backed by G Dilli Babu’s Axess Film Factory, also introduces actor Dev in the lead role.
Shedding light on the film’s genre and plot, director Mano Bharathi says, “Valaiyam is a female-oriented action thriller. Aishwarya Rajesh plays a village girl who comes to Chennai to take an examination. During her visit, she becomes a witness to a crime, and because of this, she faces certain consequences. How she takes the help of her friend, a rookie cop, to come out of the situation forms the rest of the story.” Dev is set to play the police.
Mano says that Valaiyam is not like the usual female-oriented films. “The pivotal crime in the film is set in the night and Aishwarya’s character will have stunt sequences,” he shares, further adding why Aishwarya was his first choice for the role, “I chose Aishwarya Rajesh because I wanted someone relatable.”
When asked about Dev’s casting, the director explains, “I needed an innocent face for the role of the police officer, but at the same time, I didn’t want the conventional actors who always play such roles.” Chethan, Tamizh, Pradeep Rudra, Hareesh Peradi, and Suresh Menon round out the cast of Valaiyam. Mano says that the film will be shot in and around Chennai. “Only one small village portion needs to be filmed outside the city. Also, we have only planned a single schedule of 40 days for the shoot,” he adds.
Valaiyam has cinematography by M Henry, an erstwhile assistant of Velraj. The technical crew also consists of editor Bhoopathy, who is best known for Oh My Kadavule and music by Michael Britto, who recently worked on Lift. The makers plan to release Valaiyam in the latter half of this year.