Silambarasan TR

Director Gautham Vasudev Menon takes time off a hectic schedule to talk to Chennai Times about his forthcoming projects…

Minnale, his first movie, made heads turn. Kaakha Kaakha, his next, made people sit up and take note. From then on till Vaaranam Aayiram, Gautham Vasudev Menon has managed to churn out entertainer after entertainer with one thing in common — his magical touch. A touch that is evident in his next film Vinnaithandi Varuvaaya (VV), which is to hit screens in November. And if one is to go by a couple of songs that he has picturised, Gautham is well on his way to delivering another hit. Says Gautham, “VV is a feel good, bring-asmile-to-your-face sort of a love story. If the audience wants to listen to some good songs, watch some really nice visuals and experience some great chemistry between the lead pair, then they’ll like the film.” Needless to say, the movie, starring Simbu and Trisha, has already triggered huge expectations. But expectations and the pressures they bring along have never managed to curtail Gautham’s willingness to experiment. The man, while shooting VV by day, has also been busy shooting another film at night.
“I’m also making an all night film with no music and background score. The film, with Sameera Reddy and newcomers, has not been titled yet. It’s much smaller in terms of budget when compared to VV, the budget of which is around 15 crores,” he says.
Adds Gautham, “I’ve enjoyed working on this project because I had two really good
actors in Simbu and Trisha. Every time I said ‘start camera’, Trisha used to come alive. Simbu has been a revelation. I’ve seen Manmadhan and Vallavan and I know what he conforms to, but this is a complete change for him.”
But draw his attention to rumours that he wasn’t happy with Simbu initially and that the star had to do a separate photo shoot to convince him and he dismisses them with nonchalance. “It’s just like the other rumours, such as the one that I’m going out with Sameera Reddy. There’s absolutely no truth in such rumours. Actually, all the apprehensions were before we started the shoot, because when we went to the producers’ council for something else, someone there said, ‘Oh! You’re making a film with Simbu? He won’t come on time. For the first ten days, he’ll be there and then you’ll be waiting for him for the next six months. We finished this film in 60 days!
“What’s more, in Malta, we had early morning shoots. If I told Simbu to be there at 6.00 am, he would be there at 5.45 am. Normally, Simbu works during the night and sleeps through the day. But for me, he changed that around. And he’s such a good dancer, that he required no rehearsals,” explains Gautham. He goes on to add, “Just as I look forward to working again with Kamal sir and Suriya, I look forward to working with Simbu as well.”
The music for the film has been composed by A R Rahman. Observes the director, “You feel humbled when you walk in and out of Rahman’s studio. Rahman’s never uttered a bad word about anybody in the industry. There was great sync between us right from the word go. All the while, I knew that Ashutosh Gowarikar was waiting outside, as was Abbas Tyrewala. On one occasion, when I walked out of Rahman’s studio, Abbas was waiting for almost four hours. I felt really bad. Many of the inputs to Thamarai were from Rahman. I thought he wouldn’t interact and he’d let me handle it. But, he sat there and gave her suggestions when it came to choosing words. On the whole, it was a great experience working with him.”
Gautham has his hands full. The ace director gives details of his other projects, before deciding to sign off.
“I’m doing a Mahesh Babu film in December. It’s a big one, which is being produced by them. I’m also looking to do a Hindi film in June. And apart from these, I’m also doing the Telugu remake of VV straightaway.”

Regards Times of India