Actor Shan of the Nayanthara starrer Dora fame, recently turned director for a short film titled Iyakki – The Driver.
The thirty minute film revolves around the life of call taxi drivers. It begins with the voice over of an RJ who speaks about a two day strike by cab drivers. The film shows the pressure they face in their day to day lives, dealing with customers who behave unkindly.
Shan plays the lead role as a driver working hard to reach his target. There are scenes where people spill food in his cab and leave without minding, and others with people who don’t understand the practical difficulties of the driver and want him to do as they say. Shan, meanwhile, has to rush to the hospital to his wife who is in labor, and the film takes a dramatic turn here.
Jainul Jafri has worked as the cinematographer on the film. Prem is the editor, and music is composed by Vibin R. It is produced by Anamika and Abhishek under the banner Amika Productions.
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Talking about the film, Shan said in a statement, “After I decided to direct the film, I became a cab driver and completed over 500 trips. I made the film with the experience I gained through those trips. The pain of people who are graduates, yet become cab drivers who slave on the job without proper food and sleep to just get paid can never be explained.”
He said corporate companies employing them are only concerned about making money, and not the lives of the drivers. “If this continues, the upcoming generation will become slave to the inhuman corporates,” he said.
Shan was last seen in director Pa Ranjith’s Rajinikanth starrer Kaala. His upcoming project is a Tamil and Hindi bilingual directed by Sajo Sundar. He plays a cop in the film.
Watch Iyakki here: