Mani Ratnam had thought that it would be taken in one piece. After we both talked together, it was decided to make it in two parts. Actor and screenwriter Ilango Kumaravel, who co-wrote the screenplay of ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ with director Mani Ratnam, shares his experience of ‘Ponniyin Selvan Part 1’. From an interview with him…
How did you join the script of ‘Ponniin Selvan’? – “I have staged the novel ‘Ponniin Selvan’ as a play in the early stage. That’s how I got the chance to write the screenplay for this film.”
While writing the screenplay of the film, you must have had a vision. Director Mani Ratnam also had a vision. What is the point where the two join? – “It is not like that. What was Kalki’s vision at first? Knowing what his vision was, Mani Ratnam decided how we were going to bring it to life and the pace of our script. Most of the time there were no such differences between us. We did this by joining. He made it clear to me. ‘Whatever comes to your mind, write it down. I write whatever comes to my mind. In the end, we will combine both together and decide’ he said. One such healthy practice happened while writing the screenplay of ‘Ponniin Selvan’.”
How much time did you take to screenplay Ponni Selvan? – “We started it in October 2018. He had thought that it could be taken in one piece. After we both talked together, it was decided to make it in two parts. I had one comment about the length of the film. He had a point. Then we planned to make two parts and started writing the screenplay. It took almost a year to write the screenplay alone. After finishing writing, we went for shooting in 2019. Corona came in 2020. We have finished shooting the film in one way.”
What kind of challenges did you face while adapting the novel into a screenplay? – “It all boils down to how we see the novel. The perspective from which we look at a novel and the search for possibilities in that novel will determine the structure of the screenplay. The screenplay was based on that. If you look at the challenge, the biggest challenge is making it into a screenplay. However, it is happiness when you go through all that and enjoy the things in it. The desire to change it like this will also lend a helping hand. Everything needed for the screenplay was taken from the novel.”
The film has been released and is receiving great response. How do you feel about this moment? – “Very happy. People celebrate Ponni’s film Selvan as a historical record. Everyone likes the movie. I was hoping and wanting this to happen. I don’t know if it will happen. But I am very happy when I walk. After watching the film, all my relatives and friends from the town appreciated it.”
The character of the astrologer is not shown in the film? – “You can take it that way. Whatever Kalki wanted to achieve with the help of the child astrologer, Alwarkadiyan would have achieved it with his faith. Even in my dramas I cast Nambi as the child astrologer. They asked about it. But the majority of fans accepted it. A novel is a medium you can read. When it comes to another medium it has certain requirements. Even if you do it without understanding the requirements, it will not work. It cannot be approached with devotion. What matters is how we bring the relevant plot to the stage. I used my traditional techniques for that.
I used these types of arts such as Terikuthu and Devaratam to display. In this way, the play ‘Ponniin Selvan’ which I wrote at the Music Academy in 2014 became a big success. They sold tickets on the block. Such is the popularity of the novel. So, the question should be how we bring out the life of a novel, not whether we get the words right or not.”
Regarding the tendency of the younger generation to absorb the historical fiction film Ponni’s Selvan as true history… – “The answer lies in your question. Kalki himself has called the novel ‘Ponniin Selvan’ a fiction. That is what we should believe. So we can’t approach ‘Ponni’s wealth’ considering this as history.”
Your next projects? – “I am acting in Captain Miller with Dhanush. Acting in a web series; Coming soon to Amazon Prime. Next month, ‘Ratna Saatchi’, based on Jayamohan’s story, will be released on Aaha. A film is under way with Neelam Productions. I am acting like a film for a hot star.”