Reporting by Niveda Manohar; Photos by Sriram Narasimhan
Following the clash between directors Bala and Bharathiraja over the cinematic adaptation of Vela Ramamoorthi’s novel Kutraparambarai, Bala held a press conference today to clarify his stance, and respond to certain disparaging statements made by Bharathiraja and script writer Rathna Kumar.
The book was allegedly a bone of contention between Bharathiraja and Bala, as earlier this year, Bala had announced that he would adapt the story into a film, and cast actors Arya, Vishal, Arvind Swamy and Atharvaa. Meanwhile, Bharathiraja claimed that it had been his dream project, and that he was on the lookout for a producer. The veteran director went on to hold a sudden pooja for this film at Usilampatti on April 3.
During the press conference, Bala clarified that he was not adapting Kutraprambarai. Vela Ramamoorthi was re-releasing his 2002 novel Kootanjoru under the name ‘kutra pramabari’. Bala plans to weave his film around Kootanjoru‘s plot. He further stated that he had conveyed this information to Bharathiraja, who in turn asked him not to title his film Kutraparambarai, to which he had agreed. Bala alleges that, in spite this, Bharathiraja and his script writer Rathnakumar have been making disparaging comments about him to the press and in public.
Kutraparambarai is set in the 1910s when the British laid the Criminal Tribes Act in the Madras Presidency. The act branded a few castes as criminals, or more formally, “addicted to the systematic commission of non-bailable offences”. Since they were described as “habitually criminal”, restrictions on their movements were imposed. Adult male members of such groups were forced to report weekly to the local police. Kutraparambarai loosely translates to crime-dynasty or criminal-dynasty. In Tamil Nadu, the Thevars caste had suffered under this Act, and many members of the community had died because of it. Bharathiraja, being a Thevar, had claimed that only he had the right to adapt the story into a film, as caste plays an important role in the issue.
Responding to this, Bala said, “Firstly, Kutramabarai is not fiction. It is real history. And so they cannot claim that they have written the story themselves. Moreover, it is childish to insist that only he can make this into a film. Anybody can make a film on history. It is unjustified for Bharatiraja to claim rights over the film because of his ethnicity.”
Further, Bharathiraja has allegedly said that actors with non-Tamil backgrounds, like Vishal and Arya, would not be able to do justice to the film. In response, Bala said, “Cinema is a universal language, and drawing regional or even national boundaries around it, is wrong.”
Bala and producer G Dhananjayan said they had made several attempts to resolve the issue with Bharathiraja. Bala, through Dhananjayan, had even expressed an interest in attending the movie launch of Kutraparamabarai. But Bharathiraja refused to invite him, saying that it could lead to unwanted comments on Bala. An explanation which Bala felt was justified.
At the movie launch of Kutraparambarai, writer Rathnakumar had said that, if “they” so wished, they could join the film and work as an assistant to the veteran Bharathiraja, and maybe “clean his shoes”. This was seen as a remark aimed at Bala and Vela Ramamoorthi. Rathnakumar also told an interviewer that Bala and Ramamoorthi had once gone to Bharathiraja seeking employment. Bala’s strongly-worded response to this was, “I have been an assistant only to Balu Mahendra. I would never call anyone else my guru and I have been quite stubborn about this.”
Rathna Kumar has also said that Bala “knows the language of dogs”. In response, Bala said, “Knowing the language of dogs is nothing to be embarrassed about. I wish Rathna Kumar knew it too. At least then he would understand what gratitude is.” Bala even said that during the shooting of Pithamagan (2003), Rathna Kumar had told Bala that Bharathiraja would never be able to make Kutraparambarai and that he would never write for him again.
Finally, Bala warned both Bharathiraja and Rathnakumar that while they have the freedom to make any movie they wish to make, they should not comment on him (Bala), when he was not involved with the film in any manner. “I have forgiven them on four occasions already. I cannot be patient anymore. If they talk about me again, whether or not it is good for me, it will definitely not be good for them,” he said.
Here are some pictures from the press meet:
