Aivaraattam , the story of a unique form of football played in Sivaganga with just five people in a team, is in the news for a lot of reasons. One of them is that the film sees actor Jayaprakash and his sons, Niranjan and Udith Dushyanth, share screen space for the first time.
Dushyanth made his film debut with Sasikumar’s Easan, where he played the title role. “My elder son, Niranjan, also had a role in the film. It was very new for them as they aren’t really exposed to films. Niranjan is into events management, while Dushyanth is studying Visual Communication. When Mithun Manickam, the director, approached my sons to play sportspersons, it seemed like a great idea. And then, I got into the film by chance,” says Jayaprakash.
“It is a simple script and a small-budget film with a lot of heart. My sons play the captains of the junior and senior teams. I play the village ‘big man’ who supports one of the teams,” he says. What Jayaprakash enjoyed most about the shoot was the time they got to spend together as a family. “The boys were playing football through the day, under the burning sun, and would return to the room tired. Luckily, we got to share a three-bed room. It was like old times. We had breakfast and dinner together and went to bed after having a nice conversation. It was such a departure from life in the city, where the boys would rush into their rooms once they got home,” he says.
Jayaprakash is now shooting for a host of films, including Vishal’s next with Suseenthiran. He has also wrapped up Pandiraj's Simbu-starrer Idhu Namma Aalu , where he plays a single parent. “With these directors, it’s like a homecoming of sorts. They are my mentors, you see!”
