JOIN USWorking with Vikram was a learning experience: Karthik Subbaraj on 'Mahaan'
Noted filmmaker Karthik Subbaraj says that he enjoyed working with Vikram in his latest movie Mahaan as it helped him observe and learn from Chiyaan's approach to his craft. He added that the Saamy hero's ability to completely get into the skin of his characters makes him 'one of the finest actors there is'. Praising Dhruv, who plays the parallel lead alongside his father in Mahaan, he said that the young star has a bright future as he is 'high on energy'.
Edited excerpts from the interview with DH:
How did Mahaan happen?
Basically, it started out as a story about a father and son but then those were the initial stages and there was no concrete script. A few years later, I was to narrate a story to Vikram and I pitched this story. When he agreed, I felt that it would be really great if his son Dhruv could do it. I wanted a real father-son duo to do it.
Also Read | 'Mahaan' review: Vikram shines in a stylish yet predictable film
How was the experience of working with Vikram?
He is a great performer and I am a big fan of his work. When he come on board, I realised that I needed to write something that would be challenging for him. He is one of the finest actors there is. To merely see him perform in Mahaan was a great learning experience for me.
What do you admire the most about Dhruv?
This is his second film after Adithya Varma. Mahaan is completely different from that movie as it's more action-based. I liked the way he spoke about this character after reading the script. He is high on energy.
Are there any similarities between Vikram and Dhruv?
Both are passionate about cinema. Vikram sir puts a lot of effort into his roles. We saw the way he totally transformed himself into a different individual for I. It is the same with Dhruv.
What was the challenging aspect of Mahaan?
The first half was quite challenging as there were a lot of scenes but we did not have a lot of time at our disposal. It was challenging to handle the scenes with a lot of dialogues as I had to ensure that they had an emotional connect.
You apparently love gangster dramas
I come up with grey characters when I write the script and that is where the gangster elements come into the picture. I, frankly speaking, never write white (innocent) characters.
Any plans for a sequel to Mahaan?
There are no plans to work on a sequel right away. I might go in that direction if I find something interesting to take the characters forward