With the story of Kaala placed in Dharavi, Mumbai’s noted slum, and a star of Rajinikanth’s stature playing the lead, shooting outdoors was next to impossible. That’s where art director T. Ramalingam’s technical assistance came into play.
Ramalingam, who last worked with director Pa Ranjith on Kabali, erected a set in Chennai. It was no mean task to replicate the bustling Dharavi and pre-production work took three months, involving visits to the area for study and sketches. Over the next eight months, an open ground in Chennai was transformed into Dharavi and Kaala was filmed.
Ramalingam said: “We incorporated little details, not to forget Dharavi’s narrow by-lanes, cross roads and its landmarks — the kumbharwada and dhobi ghat.”
Generally, prior to filming, cinematographer Murali decides on a colour tone for his visuals. With Kaala, he realised that he could not restrict himself to one tone. Dharavi is a hub of not just Tamilians but comprises of people from different parts of India.
“The lives of these people is a collage of various hues and their different cultures,” says Murali.
Kaala is about the leader of a marginalised section of people living in Dharavi who takes up their causes.
“Ranjith believes that cinema is not just a vehicle of entertainment but a medium to highlight issues pertaining to society and to spark a debate among viewers,” added Murali, who worked with Ranjith on his earlier two films — Madras and Kabali.
Kaala talks about the effects of globalisation and the gap between the wealthy and the marginalised. It represents the voices of these people. And, led by a star like Rajinikanth, Ranjith hopes that his message will be well heard and carried far.
This being their second film with Rajinikanth, they were less nervous and more comfortable. Rajinikanth too was more confident of the crew and closely involved.
“So, the film making process was far easy,” he said.
The climax sequence is something to watch out for — a faceoff between Rajinikanth and Nana Patekar, choreographed by stunt master Dilip Subbarayan. Remembering the healthy competition between Patekar and Rajinikanth, Murali added that Patekar does his homework to the smallest detail. Patekar dubbed his lines in Tamil.
