19 October 2022
Hyderabad
Right from his childhood, director Ashwath Marimuthu, who is making his Telugu debut with Ori Devuda— which is an adaptation of his own 2020 Tamil box-office super hit Oh My Kadavule— loved Telugu films because they are “colourful, humorous and emotional”! “I’m a big fan of Jr NTR sir, Prabhas sir and Allu Arjun sir. It was a dream to come to the Telugu industry. I wanted to deliver something amazing to the Telugu audience and make my spot here,” the director declares in an exclusive conversation with us. Excerpts from an interview:
Did you always wanted to become a director? Can you share with us your journey?
Honestly, I never wanted to become a director to begin with. By doing short films, the interest developed. In school and all, your ambition changes every year based on what you see and hear. If I saw pilot related stuff, I wanted to become a pilot. If I watched Vadivelu or Brahmanandam comedy, I wanted to be a comedian. I studied biology in my 12th standard and I was supposed to get into a medical college but I didn’t see myself in a doctor’s coat and perform surgeries. So, I took up engineering. Back then in some colleges in Tamil Nadu, talking to girls was not a common sight. Which is why I preferred a college where everyone could speak to others. It was a great place, where I got to act and direct short films. At a cultural event of the college, a video, which I directed and acted in, was played. Everybody enjoyed it; they stood up and clapped for it. It was for the first time someone was appreciating my work. Otherwise, I used to get chucked out of the class regularly. Plus, coding was not my cup of tea. I could write 500 pages of good scenes but I never understood coding. There was this cute-looking Anglo-Indian English teacher who told me, ‘Ashwath, this (filmmaking) is coming out good for you. You better go in this line which will be good for you’. I couldn’t get a job because of my backlogs. I had time, so I participated in a reality show and made short films. I was the youngest contestant there and was eventually awarded the Best Director. Seeing my final short film, writer-director Vetrimaran said, ‘If this guy focuses on his craft, he will become one of the best writers of Indian cinema.’ It was quite a confidence-booster to take up filmmaking seriously.
How did you land your debut feature Oh My Kadavule?
After the reality show, I was offered feature projects but I had other ideas. I wanted to go and meet my girlfriend who was in Paris at that time. Just like how Suriya goes to the US to meet Sameera Reddy. I’m a big fan of Gautham Menon. He spoiled my life literally (smiles) and I told him about it. However, I couldn’t get a visa because I was a potential immigrant without a back balance. So I started doing ads and lots of other stuff to make money. Yet, I couldn’t get a visa because they couldn’t accept me as a traveler. So I decided to go as a student. I took up a course, Advance Filmmaking in New York Film Academy for six months. The course was taught in Sydney and then in Paris. I got to meet her and shortly after, I moved to London with her. It was a different phase of life. Later, we broke up. I had time to finish writing Oh My Kadavule. The film’s idea— if marriages are made in heaven, then why are so many divorces? — crossed my mind in 2013 itself. From there on, it kept evolving as I matured with my thoughts. I was starting to feel love as well. Ashok Selvan was my close friend and we wanted to do a film together. Later, we assembled a team. We approached Vijay Sethupathi to play the God and he did the film for free. That’s how the film happened. It went on to become a cult movie. People just didn’t watch it once; they watched it for 12-13 times. It opened up a lot of doors for me.
Did you always wanted to direct the Telugu remake as well?
The reason I wanted to do the film in Telugu as well was because of my girlfriend. She is a Telugu girl. The first time she watched the Tamil trailer, she told me, ‘Bloody, this is a Telugu film. Telugu people will love it if you make it in Telugu’. So I wanted to do it for her but then I broke up with her again. Now, I’ve done it for Telugu people who I love. PVP garu acquired the rights of Oh My Kadavule for a huge sum prior to its theatrical release and he was keen on me to direct it.
A frame-to-frame remake is not advised generally. How did you approach the Telugu version?
Before we started Ori Devudu, a lot of people told me, ‘Ashwath you’ve created magic once and it can’t be repeated’. When I hear such things, I want to prove them wrong and in style. I like challenges. Oh My Kadavule story was universal. With the Telugu version, I didn’t want to do an exact replica. I wanted to retain the emotion and staging but with respect to giving freshness, I’ve changed everything —right from the cast to the crew. Ori Devuda’s cast is completely brand new. If I wanted I could’ve retained some members from the original but I didn’t. The soul of the original was the music. While retaining the same composer Leon James, we went for a fresh album altogether. The original’s soundtrack was a roaring success with chartbusters like Haiyo Haiyo and Kadhaipomma accounting for seven-eight crore views. Many big Tamil actors told me to retain Kadhaipomma, saying it was the soul of the original but we thought we can create super hit music again. At the end of the day, the original music came from our table, right? I strongly believe that magic can be created an infinite number of times if your heart is in the right place and if you are true to your audience. We approached the Telugu version as a new film again, with an intention of giving something new to the audience. That is how Avunanavaa and Gundellona took shape. With the film as a whole as well, we tried to give new things to the Telugu audience from the first motion poster to the latest promotional materials. I believe even Tamil people would want to watch the Telugu version because the treatment is new. Visually also, the film will differ from that of the Tamil version. The Telugu trailer crossed one crore views in two days, while the lifetime views of the Tamil trailer was six million views. I attribute it to the fresh treatment I gave to the Telugu version.
Why did you think of Mithila Parkar as the leading lady and how tough was it to get her on board?
She is a great actor. One of my friends told me that I should try her. When I saw her pictures and some of her work, I felt she was tailor-made for the part. I felt the need to approach her and did so by speaking to some managers in Hyderabad and Chennai. They would get back to me in a couple of hours, saying that she watched the film but doesn’t want to do it. I felt something was wrong. I was like, ‘How can someone say no to the character because at the end of the day, the film is about Arjun realizing his love for Anu. It’s about how audiences fall in love with her. Any heroine would want to do a proper role where there is so much meat for her. How can she decline it?’ I approached another manager who told me he is managing her. Turns out, she wasn’t interested in the film again. Then I approached another manager who too said he is managing her. Again I was like, ‘How can so many people manage one actress?’ In the meanwhile, I told Vishwak about Mithila. He was pessimistic about her participation. He said he will change his name if she hops on board. Simultaneously, plan B was on, while I was trying to figure out a way to reach Mithila. Finally, I got in touch with one Teja, who spoke to the agency that Mithila was attached to. She immediately came on call with me. I told her, ‘I don’t know why you’ve rejected the film so many times. You should watch it and get back to me. If you don’t like it, don’t do it.’ She replied, saying that this is the first time a query has come to her about the film. I’ve quickly realized a lot of people played with me. She watched the film the same day and called me back to say: “Nobody else should be doing the film other than me. Thank you for reaching out to me. This will be the best launch for me in the South.” She has done a phenomenal job with Anu and people are going to love her.
Tharun Bhascker seems to have written Telugu dialogues…
The Tamil dialogues were quirky and on-the point because the film travels through dialogue as it’s a drama. I wanted someone to translate while retaining the soul of the original dialogues. Even when I asked Tharun to take a little leeway, he was like, ‘What you’ve written is superb. I don’t want to dilute it’. He understood the core emotion of the film and contributed in a way that even dialogues reach the audience. In terms of staging though, I’ve got feedback that the first half (of Oh My Kadavule) was a little slow while the second half was phenomenal. So, I changed the pace of the first half for the Telugu version. With respect to Venkatesh sir as well, I’ve changed everything. I’ve given his role a mass and quirky touch.
Vishwak Sen at the pre-release event said he was a little apprehensive about signing the film before PVP convinced him. What happened over there?
First things first, he didn’t get to see the film completely to begin with, as he was occupied with something else. PVP insisted that he watches the film. He told him, ‘You are missing out on a great film. You watch it and let me know. If you don’t like it, it’s okay.’ Vishwak watched the film and he went mad over it. He came to PVP and said, ‘I was about to miss out on a great film. I’m doing it immediately’. As an actor he has done a phenomenal job in the film. It will take him to the next league. People are going to madly fall in love with him. Every actor will have one film that changes his career completely and takes him to a different league and this film will be that one for Vishwak.
Talk to us about the film…
It is going to be an emotional ride. It’s a masala film with aesthetically shot visuals, aesthetically done music and with great performances. It is going to haunt you for the rest of your life. People will watch it whenever they feel bored. It will be 200 % better than the original in terms of quality and performances.
Venkatesh is an extremely spiritual person and he is playing a God in the film…
When I first met him and showed him what we’ve shot until then, he said, ‘Ashwath give me one day's time. Baba will tell me if I should do the film or not’. He accepted the project the next day. And the credit for it should go to PVP sir as well. Both PVP sir and Venkatesh sir go a long way. As a token of his love and respect towards PVP, Venky sir agreed to do the film. PVP sir never requested Venky sir to do the film. He only asked him to do it if he's interested. Both of them have great mutual respect for each other.
Did your chats with him ever veer towards spirituality?
(Smiles) No. I was completely immersed in the shooting from morning to evening. I didn’t have the time to converse with sir. He filmed for three-four days.
Who are your filmmaking inspirations?
In terms of how he treats his women and how his characters are so dignified, Gautham Menon sir is one of my inspirations. I’m also a big fan of Frank Capra. He made films like It’s a Wonderful Life, which gave a lot of hope and positivity to the people. I’m also a big fan of (Steven) Spielberg’s ET. My biggest inspiration in Telugu, for the past five-ten years, has been SS Rajamouli sir. His emotions are in the right place and he elevates them to another level with his skills. I have a photo of him in my new house. You can spot it the moment you enter into my house with three spotlights on it.
-NAGARAJ GOUD
