It's Mani's way

It’s a film that is well on its way to smashing several box-office records. With his latest offering O Kadhal Kanmani (OK Bangaram in Telugu), Mani Ratnam has yet again proved that he has what it takes to make a film that can set the cash registers ringing. Deccan Herald catches up with the ace director to know more about the man, his pressures, his routines, joy, fears and dreams.

Your previous film ‘Kadal’, though critically acclaimed, did not do too well at the box-office. As a result, were you under pressure while making ‘O Kadhal Kanmani’?

You are under pressure every time you make a film. For me, every film is like a first film and I am under pressure — if not from the public, from my own self. When I do the next film, I will be under the same pressure as my previous one. There are two aspects to the whole thing. What you choose as the subject of your film is crucial. That’s really 50 per cent. And then how you are going to develop it, put it together and execute it forms the rest. Those two don’t change. The entire process remains the same and therefore, the pressure levels also remain the same.

You are willing to experiment as if you have no fear at all. Does Mani Ratnam fear anything at all?

Yes, the very film and every day of its shoot. You actually don’t know how you will be shooting it. So, you have to go there and find a way of creating something which is written on paper and make it alive. I do have a lot of help. I have the actors to perform. I have the DOP, who is like my right hand, and I have the art director giving me the ambience that I require. But still, I have to do it. Every step is a challenge and the more difficult it is to take that leap from paper to film, the more the pressure becomes.
One reason why your movies are so lovable is because people are able to relate themselves to your characters. Such characters couldn’t have been created without you having observed them somewhere in real life…

Sometimes, to be very honest, you are disappointed with yourself (smiles).You are in a situation in real life and there is something dramatic and drastic happening out there. Even when this is happening, one part of your mind is wondering how this will be as a scene while the other part says, ‘What are you doing?’ There is one merciless part of you which is always looking for things that will make a nice scene, a nice moment. You scavenge out of life. Sometimes, you are conscious of it, at other times, you are not. After that, it just becomes a part of you and comes when you are writing. You don’t actually say that I will take this from here. But some sequences may be from instances. All makers will take pieces from what they have seen, heard and read. All of that becomes your raw material.

There are films that have a message for the public. What’s your take on messages?
I don’t believe it is my duty to pass on messages. I don’t like people giving me a message. So, I don’t intend passing on one. I just believe in sharing — an experience, a thought, an idea, an emotion, and reflecting on what I see. Each one is an adult or will be an adult soon and they can form their own opinion. Who am I to make them sit and take a moral science class? I am not here to give messages.

At any given point in time, you say you have ideas — two or three which you think can be made into a film. How do you zero in on one idea to make a film?

We develop ideas and see which of it works. For instance, at this point, I have a couple of scripts which are completely done. Then, there are some ideas which are half-done and then, there are new ideas that are coming up. Picking up a script is crucial because you are going to spend the next one-and-a-half years of your life with it. So, it has to be done carefully. It’s almost like a wedding. Sometimes, an idea may not take off fully and you know it’s not going anywhere. However, it might fall into place later like when you finish another film and go back.

What do you do when you are not making a film?

I’m like everybody else. After I finish a film, I become a normal guy. I have a lot of friends. I listen to a lot of music. We watch movies, read books, travel, play and get back to being fit. To be fit, I go to the gym. I hate it, but I still go thrice a week. Also, three times a week, I play golf. Golf is obsessive. In fact, my obsession for it is as bad as my obsession for films.

Does Mani Ratnam enjoy watching his own films?

No. Somehow, I see pixels in them. I see faults in them. I can’t sit through the film because you see it so many times when you are making it. You keep chiseling and correcting. At the end of it, you want it out of your system.

Your son, who is doing his PhD in Philosophy, is not into films. Do you have any regrets about it?

No, not at all. I did what I wanted to do, and he should do what he wants to do.

What is Mani Ratnam’s dream project?

My next project. Every time, it’s the next one. The thing is, at one point in time, something is important to you. If it doesn’t happen, after some time, it goes out of your system. I don’t carry a dream project across. There are so many genres that you can do, so many things that can be done. You try to take one step after another to try and make something which is within the mainstream but which still is something you can be happy about. You look to make something you can be proud of, and something you can say will have reality, some sensibility, and some sensitivity to it.