‘Puli’: The art of creating a fantasy film

If art director Muthuraj is exhausted from working around the clock with a large team of workers and beating deadlines, he does not show it. Tamil film Puli has not been an easy project.

A former assistant of noted art director Sabu Cyril, the soft-spoken Muthuraj told tabloid! about how he designed everything for this fantasy saga, including costumes for every character.

The primary structure of the set, resembling a palace and measuring 91 metres by 48 metres with a height of 18 metres, was erected at Aditya Ram Studios in Chennai. Made of fibreglass, wood and plywood, it consisted of two floors. Huge figures made of fibreglass were also erected in front of the palace.

“One floor was designed as a durbar hall but it could be quickly transformed into a dining area or a corridor when the scene required,” explained Muthuraj, who received the Kerala State Award for his debut film, Guru in Malayalam.

Another floor resembled a jail. Filming alternated between these two floors. Shooting was also done at Thalakona (in Andhra Pradesh) where two villages were created under Muthuraj’s guidance. Some portions were filmed at Vagamon in Kerala. A Lilliputian kingdom forms part of the tale. So a separate set for this kingdom was created at Aditya Ram Studios.

Muthuraj designed costumes for every actor, which were subsequently executed by different designers — Manish Malhotra worked on Sridevi’s costumes and Jayati Bose for Shruthi Haasan.

“I had discussions with the designers and in some cases alterations were made. For Sridevi’s costume I had sketched a sleeveless gown, but Manish felt full sleeves enhanced Sridevi’s look, so that was changed.”

When it came to designing costumes for the Lilliputians, Muthuraj let his imagination run free.

“Instead of giving these characters normal costumes and then reducing them to Lilliputian sizes through computer graphics, we sketched costumes derived from elements of nature,” like a groundnut shell turned into a blouse, a corn leaf for a skirt, an eggplant stalk shaped into a helmet and butterfly’s wings from a flower petal.

Having worked with director Chimbu in Irumbu Kottai Murattu Singham, Muthuraj said he shares a great bond with him.

“Chimbu trusts me and gives me freedom to experiment. The advantage was the eight months of pre-production work. It made the execution easier,” he said.

As for Vijay’s look, there is no drastic change in his appearance, except the blue contact lenses he wears.

Praising Vijay’s calm nature, Muthuraj added, “He observes everything minutely and remembers the names of every individual on the sets. Many times there has been a rush to dismantle and reorganise the sets, often at short notice. It meant a lot to my assistants when Vijay appreciated their work personally.”

Braving insect bites and working in the forests dreading an elephant attack during the night, Muthuraj owes it all to his team.

“They were a committed lot. Even today some of my assistants are suffering from the infection of those bites,” he added.

Muthuraj who has worked in Malayalam films Arputhu Theevu and Pazhasi Raja, will start work next on Tamil director Atlee’s film. And, then will be teaming with Tamil director Shankar for Enthiran 2.

“Puli is not a war film nor pertaining to any historical era. It’s a fantasy story to be enjoyed with the family,” Muthuraj said.

“Vijay fans will not be disappointed.”