For film-goers across languages, watching a Mani Ratnam movie is an experience. It is to provide this kind of experience for movie-goers that the director is on a quest. “Research is part of your living. You have to experiment and constantly look around you,” he stated. His new movie OK Bangaram (O Kadhal Kanmani in Tamil) which releases today showcases a young couple Dulquer Sulemaan and Nithya Menen in a live-in relationship. “We live in a society with a lot of taboos and live-in is one such taboo. The film deals with issues of today’s generation, their conflicts and resolutions but is not just about live-in; it speaks about marriage and what is rooted and what is western.”
Mumbai has been a recurring background for the story in his movies like Bombay and Guru and now with OK Bangaram , the city gets another representation. “Each story has its own character and the place is chosen accordingly. Calcutta has its own character and Bombay has its own. The story is centred in Bombay and it gets represented,” he pointed out. With A.R. Rahman and Prakash Raj by his side, the director observed that the movie has many realistic elements and portrays true emotions on screen.
Rahman’s peppy tunes in the movie are turning out to be chartbusters and the added attraction is Rahman’s son lending his voice. “I created a song for my family and I thought of making it into a music video. He (Mani Ratnam) heard it and told me he wanted to use it,” he said. Even as Rahman spoke about the music, Mani Ratnam quipped, “I torture him and he puts up with it.” Rahman smiled and applauded Mani Ratnam’s way of selecting people. “His unique quality is that he never judges people by their popularity. He has open arms for anyone who has talent and is truthful and that reflects in his work.”
Two days before the release of his movie, the ace director said he feels relaxed. “He (Rahman) takes criticism by his side. If he comes up with a finished product and you say you do not like it, without second thoughts he’ll make another. If someone did that to my scene, I would have thrashed him,” he said jokingly.
Having worked with Mammootty in Dalapathi and now with his son Dulquer, the director said the father-son duo is different in their approach towards acting. “They have entirely different styles. He is a wonderful talent and is not influenced by his father’s style and has created his own identity,” he said. When someone wondered how at this age (he is turning 60), he has been able to make youthful films, he retorted, “Who said I am 60? I am 21!” With smiles all around, as the duo got up to leave, Mani Ratnam had cast a spell like his movies!
