Filmmaker Magizh Thirumeni is excited about his maiden collaboration with Ajith Kumar, Vidaamuyarchi, but he also maintains a level of cautious optimism, so as not to over-hype the film. The director reveals that this was a long-overdue collaboration. He says, “Ajith sir wanted me to direct him while I was working on Meaghamann (2014). But that did not materialise and the years went by before we joined for Vidaamuyarchi.”
Magizh reveals that he couldn’t work on another romantic film like his debut, Mundhinam Partheney (2010), as he was expected to make action thrillers following the box-office success of Thadaiyara Thaakka (2012). “I have not restricted myself to any genre. I would love to make romantic films again. But I am labelled as an action director, which is influencing my filmography.” However, the director says he is eager to do more star vehicles, after working on Vidaamuyarchi. He adds, “I don’t believe that a star vehicle should necessarily compromise on quality.”
Magizh says Vidaamuyarchi was a product of the shared vision he had with Ajith on making a mainstream actioner, which is also not an over-the-top masala film. “When Ajith sir met me first, these were the exact words he said: ‘Magizh, let’s make a film that brings us both out of our comfort zones’. I was also particular that the audiences’ intelligence should not be taken for granted by having illogical scenes in the film.”
He also points to the sad trend prevailing in Indian cinema of making logic a negotiable factor. “It is surprising that there is even a discussion about whether or not to include logic in a film. Isn’t it not a given? In other industries outside India, logic is mandatory, and a film without that would be laughed at. This is why I wanted to keep the hype low for the film so that I don’t send any wrong signals to the audience.
Ajith sir was also particular in that regard. I want to make it clear that Vidaamuyarchi is a clean, situation-driven action thriller without any forced masala moments,” he says. While the director was initially concerned about making a story-driven film with an A-lister like Ajith Kumar, Magizh was surprised to find out that Ajith himself wanted to do a film devoid of any over-the-top masala elements.
On how he developed this sensibility to create story-driven films, the director points at his reading habit. “Reading not just makes you a good filmmaker but also a better person. It introduces you to individuals and lays bare the different dynamics between humans. It makes you understand the perfections and imperfections of human character.
Without understanding these things, I don’t think one can be a good filmmaker. Pudhumaipithan, T Janakiraman, and G Nagarajan are my favourite authors. If you ask me if they had influenced any of my films directly, the answer is no. But the learning I received about human nature in their writings has made me a better filmmaker and a writer,” he says.
However, on whether the books that he read influenced him to write reticent characters, he responds, “It is not that I don’t like to write talkative characters. Any character and the way they behave should serve a purpose in the story. It all depends on whose story I am working on—whether it is about a talkative person, a reticent person, or someone who doesn’t talk at all. Barring the only romantic film I made my debut with, all the other films were action thrillers, where the emphasis is on the events and not the characters.”
Vidaamuyarchi’s production faced numerous delays due to several factors. On how he handled the delays, Magizh says, “Actually, things weren’t as turbulent as they looked from the outside. We were prepared for everything. The initial plan was to finish the shoot by January last year and release the film on Ajith sir’s birthday on May 1. But, Azerbaijan faced unprecedented snowfall, and it took two to three months for things to return to normalcy.
As we already knew Ajith would join Adhik’s film and prepare for the race later in the year, we rescheduled the shoot accordingly. I was very well prepared to face this level of unpredictableness. We ensured that all the actors were comfortable despite the changes. Having seniors like Trisha and Arjun sir made my job easier as well.” He further adds that Ajith’s weight loss in between the delays came as a blessing in disguise as Vidaamuyarchi unfolds in two different periods.
Elaborating on the previous point, the filmmaker said Ajith’s physique made the stunt sequences more effective. “Though I didn’t make changes in the action sequences for his transformation, he looked stunning in the scenes,” he says, reiterating his initial statement before signing off, “Vidaamuyarchi is a realistic action thriller with organic moments and stunt sequences. I urge the audiences not to carry any preconceived notion about the film, and I can guarantee that it will be an engaging film worth your time.”