Marudhu‘s press meet was held on Monday evening at the Prasad Lab. Directed by Muthaiah, the film stars Vishal, Sri Divya, and Soori. The event was full of laughter, largely thanks to Soori, but also—quite inadvertently—thanks to the anchor, who kept mispronouncing words in both Tamil and English. Muted giggles at mispronunciations turned to outright laughter at the bigger blunders. For instance, when despite repeated attempts to say ‘Kaviperarasu’ (Vairamuthu’s title) correctly, the anchor said ‘Kavi-Perusu’!
The teaser of the film and the song ‘Karuvakaatu Karuvaaya’ were screened. The similarities with Muthaiah’s previous films, Kutti Puli and Komban, were unmistakable, and something the director would soon address. But first, a reserved cinematographer Velraj, took the stage. He shared stories about how, every day after the shooting ended, Vishal would train the cast in volleyball.
Muthaiah was praised by the cast for his sincerity and dedication. Never taking a break between shots, he would relax only after the day’s work was done.
When it was Soori’s turn to speak, the audience listened with rapt attention, bracing themselves for the laughs coming their way. Soori shared a story about how he and Vishal had stopped by a roadside Vada stall one afternoon. They noticed that the owner, a woman, was having issues with debtors, who wouldn’t let her run her business in peace. Vishal immediately gave his assistant some money, approximately Rs. 10-15 thousand, and told him to give it to the woman. Puzzled and confused, she was very hesitant about accepting the money. It was only after Soori persisted, and Vishal spoke to the woman, that she was finally persuaded into keeping the money.
Soori then spoke about ‘Appatha’, who plays Vishal’s grandmother in the movie. Appatha had a number of important dialogues in the film, which is about the relationship between a grandmother and her grandson. But, as memory isn’t her strong point, she carried chits to help her remember her lines. And that meant she kept moving her eyes away from Soori to read the lines. Eventually, Soori had to tape the dialogue sheet on his face to ensure that Appatha could say her lines and still keep her eyes fixed on him!
Halfway through his speech, Sridivya walked into the hall. Inevitably, all eyes were on her. Soori made everyone laugh by saying he would finish his speech soon, as nobody would pay attention to him now.
Sri Divya in turn said that she was surprised to see Soori perform an emotional scene with so much earnestness. “Naan Mersalayitten” she said.
RK Suresh, the producer-actor who impressed many with his performance in Tharai Thappattai, plays the antagonist in Marudhu. He received praised for his performance in this film as well. He reportedly plays one of the most frightening rural-villains in recent times.
The crowd burst into laughter when director Muthaiah was invited on stage. The emcee had mistakenly called him the ‘Ship of the Captain’. Muthaiah meanwhile responded to the criticism he receives for the kind of films he makes, “Everyone says that my films are ‘backward’ for being rural and concentrating only on family sentiments. However, I think family sentiments are exactly what is needed in society these days. And so, if I am branded ‘backward’ for that, I would accept it with pride, and these are the kind of films I will continue making.”
Vishal said that, in the past, he hadn’t given 100% to a role, “I have to admit that [in my previous films,] I have probably given only 70% of what I am capable of. Sometimes, I simply do not give much thought to details. But in Marudhu, I have given my best performance to date.”
An interesting fact about Marudhu is that the cast includes both actor Radha Ravi and Vishal. Given that the film began shooting on the heels of the Nadigar Sangam elections, in which Radha Ravi lost the post of Secretary to Vishal, people were naturally apprehensive of the dynamic between them. “The people on sets used to be tense whenever I had a scene with Radha Ravi sir. But I took it coolly. Nadigar Sangam is totally independent of the work we do. Even the villagers who watched the shooting would gawk at us, as if we would explode at any moment. But it was a great experience working with a seasoned actor like him,” said Vishal.
Vishal also said that his fight against piracy would continue. He said, “Even as we speak now, somewhere someone is designing and printing CD/DVD wrappers for Marudhu. If I come across any such disks, I will make sure I find out which theatre it was filmed at, and complain about them at the Producers Council. This is my ultimatum to such criminals.”
