When I ask Arun Chidambaram – ex-engineer and business analyst, and a first-time director – about venturing into the film industry, he talks about …Kannadasan. You know that Kannadasan is a terrific lyricist, and a writer-editor, he says, “but the story of him getting the job (of an editor) is equally fascinating…”
I listen to the tale. And, the gist of it is that, Kannadasan “didn’t know anything about being an editor until he got the job”.
That’s pretty much my relationship with film-making now, Chidambaram declares, “I’m learning, and I’m watching more films.”
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I wait for Arun in his office, DCKAP Cinemas – located in one of the posh neighbourhoods in Anna Nagar.
He’s late for our interview.
Jiya Shankar, his co-star (and lead) in Kanavu Variyam – a movie about electricity deficit in Tamil Nadu villages — waits with me as Arun has his photographs taken. She looks just-stepped-off-the-sets fresh, with make-up and coiffed hair. Jiya also bears an uncanny resemblance to Tamannaah Bhatia. “I know, many people have told me that,” she says. Jiya is from Mumbai, I learn. I want to act in this industry, she says. “I watch Tamil movies, I eat South Indian food… it’s this inexplicable connection I have…”
Soon, Arun walks in. “I’m sorry, it’s not fair to make you wait,” he says; the interview with Kalaignar TV seemed to have taken longer than he’d anticipated.
I believe him. I had heard he’s quite the stickler for time.
His office also has a poster on punctuality.
*****
Kanavu Variyam, Arun Chidambaram’s first as a director, and as an actor, has received international awards well before its release in the country. Many would call that lucky, but Arun confesses it wasn’t that easy. Actors rejected the script, and there wasn’t a lot of time to experiment. “I have a family. I couldn’t afford to devote a lot of time to something that might not work,” he says, “It was a risk, and people were apprehensive about it. Strangely, I was confident.”
Production-wise, Arun’s brother and father bankrolled him, so that wasn’t a hassle. “But what really put me to test was when we were supposed to begin production, we were still hunting for a lead actor.” Arun did approach a few “upcoming actors” who weren’t too keen on the idea. “I ran pillar to post, with the added pressure of starting production before the funds were taken away. Right then, a conversation with cinematographer Ilavarasu – who plays the father in the film – got me thinking.”
Soon, Arun decided to cast himself in the movie, and began attending acting sessions to groom himself. “I am no actor, but I did enjoy debates during in college. Honestly, I like to talk and orate, and have no stage fear. That really came in handy,” he says, “I also felt a deep connection with the character. He focuses on science, and the idea of doing something that most scoffed at… it wasn’t tough to be in the character’s shoes, really.”
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Arun’s decision to enter films eerily resonates with Kanavu Variyam’s tagline – ‘I have a dream’. “I had a story, and I wanted to tell the world. But, I really didn’t know that it would lead me on to make a film about it,” he smiles. The story was something he had written when working a corporate job in the USA. “I was there for eight years. From being an engineer – doing 1000-line coding – to a business analyst at JP Morgan Chase, and running my own company, there was so much to do, but very little time.” But Arun did write the tale, and sought feedback from well-meaning friends. “They liked it, and encouraged me to take it further.”
And so, he began. By watching different films, in different languages. They taught him what to make, and also, what not to make. “It’s not rocket science, you know. You just need to watch more films and learn.”
Four years were spent on getting Kanavu Variyam ready for the screens. Then, he had to market it. “I made it a point to attend film festivals, and unabashedly marketed myself and the movie as much as possible. I had no qualms about doing that. At the Shanghai Film Festival, I had cards ready, and badly wanted to meet Bradley Cooper. Mostly to meet him, but also because I wanted to tell him about my little movie.”
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He didn’t get to meet Bradley Cooper, but on the same day, Arun had a chance encounter with a Warner Brothers executive. “He saw me talking about my film, and we got talking. I had no idea where he was from. I went through his visiting card a few minutes later, and was taken aback. The next few days were spent in sending emails to hundreds of people I met at the fest…”
Warner Brothers responded to his mail within four hours.
“There’s a lot of hardship involved,” Arun adds later, “But it was more about the idea of doing something I love. I pursued a corporate job – something I didn’t like, but was pretty good at… now, I’m doing something I love.”
*****
Kanavu Variyam, starring Arun Chidambaram and Jiya Shankar, releases tomorrow.