Karthi, who is gearing up for the release of Vaa Vaathiyaar on December 12, said Tamil cinema must push boundaries to maintain its identity. Speaking at the film’s pre-release event, he shared that he often wonders what defines Tamil films today. He said, “I always think that Telugu makers are doing big films and Malayalam makers are doing different films. What’s the identity of Tamil films? We can’t do new things if we are scared to try. We need to break the barriers.”
The actor is returning to theatres after a year, following Meiyazhagan. In Vaa Vaathiyaar, directed by Nalan Kumarasamy, he plays a character inspired by late actor and political icon MG Ramachandran. Karthi praised Nalan’s approach, saying the filmmaker brings a unique style to Tamil cinema.
Karthi praises Nalan Kumarasamy’s vision
Calling Nalan a director with a strong fan base, Karthi said many people ask him whether he is working with Nalan, as per Cinema Express. He shared, “Many directors like him. Any set I go to, they ask me, ‘Are you working on a Nalan sir film?’ He lives by a ‘Thug Life’ motive.”
Karthi added that Nalan’s ideas require time to understand, just like the filmmaker’s famous line from Soodhu Kavvum. He said, “Like his dialogue in Soodhu Kavvum, you need time to understand his ideas. Even when you understand them, you can never imagine it.”
The actor recalled a similar experience when working on Selvaraghavan’s Aayirathil Oruvan. He explained that some scenes only make sense after the director clarifies them. According to him, Nalan’s imagination functions in a “parallel world,” making the process challenging but exciting.
Here’s why Karthi was initially scared to sign the film
Karthi said Vaa Vaathiyaar challenged him more than he expected. He shared, “It was a huge challenge. I was hesitant and doubtful if I could pull it off, but I understood that we have to face our fears to enter the next stage.”
He added that the film was risky because his character has an alter ego inspired by MGR. “Working on Vaa Vaathiyaar is like walking on a sword. Either you win or lose terribly.”
Karthi had earlier spoken about the film at the 2024 Amazon Prime Video event, describing it as a fresh take on classic Indian masala cinema. He mentioned that the film is a tribute to the genre but with a different flavor and added that Nalan had previously introduced dark comedy to Tamil cinema.
The film stars Krithi Shetty as the female lead, along with Rajkiran, Sathyaraj, Anandaraj, GM Sundar, Karunakaran, Shilpa Manjunath, and Ramesh Thilak. George C Williams handles cinematography, with music by Santhosh Narayanan and editing by Vetre Krishnan.
