Southern Spice: Vijay a don in ‘Thalaivaa’

When Shah Rukh Khan’s Chennai Express, chugs into town on August 8, the Bollywood Badshah will have to wrestle with Vijay’s Thalaivaa, releasing on the same day.

Actor Vijay was out of the country on a holiday and could not be reached for an interview but we pursued director Vijay, who on returning to Chennai took time off for an exclusive chat with tabloid!.

“Thalaivaa, (Leader) is a story set in Mumbai about a common man who turns into a leader,” said Vijay, son of A L Azhagappan, a well-known Tamil film producer who acted in Sasi Kumar’s Easan.

“Vijay’s character in the film goes through two phases,” he said of his lead actor, with whom he shares a name.

“In the first phase he is easy going and fun loving, but in his second phase, after he becomes a leader, his role gets more intense.”

“While there may be similarities in the characters earlier played by Vijay, this character shows distinctly different traits.”

“Vijay has pulled off the role well, especially the second half that demands emotions. There is a scene where he breaks down in tears over a dead body. That was remarkable and when Vijay performed, it seemed effortless.”

Amala Paul is paired opposite Vijay and she is not just arm candy in the story.

“It is a performance-oriented role and akin to Vijay’s role, her character goes through two different phases in the story.”

Bollywood’s Abhimanyu Singh plays the antagonist, Bhima, and Ragini Nandwani is Gauri, who adores Thalaivaa.

On finding the spark for this story, Vijay remembered enjoying films like the classic Godfather and Kamal Haasan’s Nayagan.

“I felt there were untouched elements in Nayagan, that offered scope for a story.”

Recalling a visit to Mumbai some years ago, the filmmaker learnt that followers of Haji Mastan (a don) ruled in places dominated by south Indians, such as Matunga and Chembur.

“Thalaivaa, is the story of a Tamilian ruling in Mumbai – but this is not just a thriller – there is love and humour making it wholesome entertainment for the family,” assured Vijay.

After assisting Malayalam director Priyadarshan for four years, he managed an advertisement agency for some years, before taking the plunge into films with the Tamil remake of Priyadarshan’s Kireedam, an Ajith-Trisha starrer.

His second film, Poi Solla Porom, was a remake of the Hindi film Khosla Ka Ghosla, a comedy that did well. Madraspattinam, a period story and Vijay’s third venture was a commercially and critically acclaimed film. His next Deiva Thirumagal, brought home awards in several categories. Thaandavam, was his last work.

Produced by Chandra Prakash Jain, Thalaivaa, music is scored by GV Prakash, an association that goes back to Vijay’s Kireedam, days. Actor Vijay has sung the song, Vanganna Vanakkangana. Nirav Shah has handled the camera.

What they said:

Abhimanyu Singh

“After my father is killed by Thalaivaa I am devastated and my only goal becomes avenging his death,” said Singh, whose worked before with actor Vijay in Tamil film, Velayudham.

“Vijay is a great human being and a fine actor. He does everything calmly and helped me a lot. I learnt from his subtle nuances.”

About the director, he added, “He is equally cool and completely involved in the scenes. I am amazed at his ability to understand an actor’s mentality and how he improvises characters on the sets.”

Ragini Nandwani:

“Gauri madly likes Thalaivaa, for reasons that I can’t divulge. When I heard that I would be sharing screen space with actor Vijay, I was nervous, being aware of his stardom in the south. But I found him to be a person with no airs and so grounded. As a co-actor he is supportive.

Director Vijay guided me at every step to portray the image of Gauri that he carried in his mind. He has loads of patience and is clear about what he wants.”