The terms Universal Hero and Ulaga Nayagan flash on the screen. I took that footage to the CG department and came up with the visuals – we show his Alwarpet office, pull back to show Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India and then the world, which becomes a small, black circle, which is his eyeballs, and he winks. We shot in high speed, and at the count of five, asked him to wink and smile. But I told him I only wanted to shoot his eyes. He had completely changed his get-up as he was preparing to shoot Aalavandhan. When I told him of my plan, he was not too keen, but I landed at his home with a camera. But I wanted to give him a title and fixed Ulaga Nayagan in my mind. He has many titles on film cards, like Padma Shri, Dr, Kadhal Ilavarasan. In fact, I gave the final statement only on the day the film released! Since he was instrumental for me taking on a new role, I wanted to do something special for him. His brother was looking after finance, but both of them wouldn’t ask me for anything. Kamal sir helped a lot while making the film. One day, Rahman called me to his studio and said that one of his films, Water, had been delayed and he could work on Thenali if I hadn’t already signed up someone else. But he had committed to a lot of Hindi and Hollywood films and couldn’t make time for mine. When I was making Thenali, I approached Rahman.
So, I jovially asked Rahman if he would compose for the film that I produced, too, and he immediately said yes. While we were working on Padayappa, he was also composing for Mudhalvan, which Shankar was producing. One of the biggest pluses of the film is AR Rahman’s music. We had approached Vivekh for the role that was later done by Madhan Bob. Kushi had released and become a big hit when she was shooting for our film. Vasanth (director of Poovellam Kettuppar) was all praise for her, and we knew she was Nagma’s sister. We had asked for her photos from Panchu (producer Panchu Arunachalam) annan’s office. We chose Jyotika after we saw her pictures from Poovellam Kettuppar. We chose Jayaram for the physiatrist’s character because he has an amazing ear for comedy. The English film wasn’t a hit I think, but Thenali was a success at the BO. Ultimately, it’s the screenplay that makes or breaks a story. From a single line, we can make 10 screenplays. The film is inspired from What About Bob? But I haven’t copied even one scene from that film. He had titled that film Madana, which I later made as Varalaru with Ajith. He had also heard another story I was working on and said he was willing to do it if Kamal sir wasn’t doing it. Rajini sir only suggested the title Thenali for Kamal sir’s film. He heard the stories, and would also be part of the discussions sometimes. Rajini sir asked me, ‘Naan ungala izhuthuvittutena?’, but I told him I was utilising the time to write a few stories for Kamal sir. I thought Kamal sir would finish his film in six months, but it took him almost a year – it was Hey Ram. Rajinikanth suggested the title Thenali for Kamal Haasan’s film Since everyone was for the idea, I arranged for finance and signed up Kamal sir. He also said, ‘Nalla vishayamache, poi evalonu kelunga, kettuttu advance kudugnga’. One day, I told him about Kamal sir’s offer. Rajini sir used to come to my office often for discussions. Padayappa had just released and the film was a massive success. He was very encouraging, but I was still not prepared. I hadn’t thought about turning producer at all, and so, asked him for some time to decide. A few days later, he called me over to his office again and said that he was going to produce the film he was directing and asked if I wanted to produce the one I was making. He was directing one of them and asked me if I was willing to direct the second. So, he called me to his office and said he had about a year in hand and was planning to act in two films. Kamal sir’s Marudhanayagam had gotten postponed then. Th anniversary today, KS Ravikumar talks to us about what went into making the film…
NAYAGAN HD MOVIE MOVIE
With rib-tickling performances from Jayaram, Jyotika, Devayani, Delhi Ganesh, Ramesh Khanna and Madhan Bob, and a soothing soundtrack from AR Rahman, the movie hit screens on 26 October, 2000. The film, which had subtly touched upon mental health issues in the 2000s, stars Kamal as a Sri Lankan Tamil suffering from multiple phobias. Be it the costume comedy Avvai Shanmughi, bromance entertainer Panchathanthiram or even the sci-fi Dasavatharam, humour is an integral element. When Kamal Haasan and KS Ravikumar come together, it’s always a laugh riot.