The absolute ‘unrelatability’ of Mukundan Unni attracted him, says Malayalam actor Vineeth Sreenivasan about his function within the Malayalam film ‘Mukundan Unni Associates’
The absolute ‘unrelatability’ of Mukundan Unni attracted him, says Malayalam actor Vineeth Sreenivasan about his function within the Malayalam film ‘Mukundan Unni Associates’
It is fascinating listening to multi-hyphenate movie persona Vineeth Sreenivasan speak about how he approaches a task as an actor particularly since he’s a director. “I share my suggestions at the pre-production stage when the script is being discussed. I have a conversation with the director beforehand. Once I am at the shoot, I don’t interfere. I don’t want to take away the director’s autonomy. I am a director and I would not like it if it happened to me. Like they say, too many cooks spoil the broth! If you don’t trust your director then don’t do the film,” insists the actor, whose Mukundan Unni Associates, hits theatres immediately.
After cameos in Sara’s and Kunjeldho, we are going to see Vineeth in a full-length function within the film directed by his long-time collaborator, editor, and one-time assistant Abhinav Sunder Nayak. Does being a author and director affect the way in which he selects a script as an actor?
No, he says.
Rather than a director’s eye, he picks a script primarily based on cinema’s basic function as a way of leisure. “Is it engaging? Am I enjoying it? These are the factors I consider. The character or my role in the film comes much later,” says the actor over the cellphone. The eye for story and script maybe comes from the truth that he’s a author, who has directed 5 movies of which 4 had been hits — Malarvadi Arts Club (2010), Thattathin Marayathu (2012), Jacobinte Swargarajyam (2016), and Hridayam (2022) .
Drawn by Mukundan Unni
As a lot because the partaking script, he additionally preferred Mukundan Unni’s unpredictability and the character being totally unrelatable. “I have done characters that ‘think’ and ‘behave’ like normal people. But with Mukundan Unni, you never know what he is thinking or going to do next. There would be few people like him and that drew me to him.”
There have been comparisons, primarily based on the movie’s promotions, to Saul Goodman from the Netflix collection Better Call Saul. The similarities finish with each being struggling legal professionals, he says. “Someone pointed it out on Instagram, and we [the team] decided to play along with it. Saul is more human, unlike Mukundan Unni who is narcisstic and is not humane.”
The character’s look aids in conveying a quiet menace. The preliminary look had him sporting a beard and hair styled in a different way, which modified on location at Wayanad. The beard was changed with a moustache and primary, black-framed spectacles. “We felt this look was interesting and decided to go with it.”
As a results of his lengthy affiliation with Abhinav and conversations about cinema, Vineeth had an concept of how the director would make a movie. His confidence within the debutant director is clear, “I trust him. The film has shaped up much better than the script. We have done three rounds of dubbing as the film shaped up. Since he is an editor, magic happens in the film!”
Favourite function
Director or actor?
I take pleasure in directing a movie, it provides me satisfaction and I get to contribute to the processes of filmmaking as a director. Being capable of work, as an actor, with different administrators exposes me to totally different views. Engaging with them and watching their methodology contributes to my work as director.
Next as director?
I’m considering of one thing, however I’ve performing commitments for four-five movies which I must wrap up. After these, I’ll sit right down to work on it.
The dialog veers in the direction of the movie’s marathon promotion in Kochi the place he did 20-odd interviews in addition to different actions in a day. “I enjoy promotions, especially after the creative process. When my first music album Coffee @ MG Road came out we visited shops to hand over merchandise — CDs and DVDs. For Anandam [Vineeth was a producer of the 2016 film] the actors and director visited 60-odd colleges. We did the same for Hridayam too. When you have worked hard, you do the work to promote it as well. I have a thozhilali (worker) mentality.”
Road map for love
As Hridayam comes up, he laughs on the suggestion that his movies similar to Thattathin Marayathu and, now, Hridayam, have created a street map for lovers. The latter, like Thattathin… did 10 years in the past, resonated with a cross-section of kids — from 15-16 year-olds to school college students and people of their 20s. The relatability of the story and the characters had been vital components in its reputation, “That is the thing about a coming-of-age film. People see it from the stage of life they are in and the character is at.”
He provides, “Malayalis are romantics, contrary to the perception that we are serious. We like a good romance [film], look at [the popularity of] Anniyathipraavu or Niram?”
Vineeth Sreenivasan
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
What is his method for the winner script? “The movies I make are straight from the heart. I create a parallel world of characters and their lives in my head and ‘live’ there. The script of each film is a beautiful journey.”
At a time when movie songs seldom have recall, these from his movies are remembered years later. ‘Thiruvaavaniraavu…’ from Jacobinte Swargarajyam, ‘Muthuchippi poluru…’ from Thattathin Marayathu or ‘Darshana…’ or ‘Manasse manasse…’ from Hridayam are examples.
Vineeth, who can be a singer, is pushed by the notice that whereas all movies might not stand the check of time, songs do. “I want the songs in my films to be outstanding. Years later people may not remember the movie, but songs have a longer shelf life. There are old songs I like and sing, but I don’t know which films they are from. That is the thing about good songs!”
Source: www.thehindu.com
