Ranjith Sankar reveals how Aju Varghese was roped in for 'Kamala'

Director Ranjith Sankar was on the verge of quitting the industry when he wrote the script of 'Kamala'. “I almost got drained and was skeptical about doing yet another movie,” said the filmmaker who did hit movies including Passenger, Su.. Su... Sudhi Vathmeekam, Pretham etc.

“In fact I had decided to abandon the film Kamala after writing the script. It's such a risky film to make,” he told Onmanorama.

When he revealed the first look of his new film Kamala, the striking design featuring Aju Varghese caught everyone's attention. The first-look poster was designed by Antony Stephen and the stills were captured by Naveen. Ranjith mentioned that he wanted something unusual and that's how the trio thought of bringing out a concept-laden movie poster. And recently, when the trailer was released on YouTube, movie buffs were quite amused to see Aju Varghese in a role that they were least expecting from him. The trailer has been receiving wide accolades for the intriguing scenes and gripping moments that the film is expected to show.

Talking about the making, Ranjith Sankar said, “Firstly, we can't have a big star cast for it. It's a concept film. It's a thriller, which can go astray if not handled with care. It was shot with much difficulty in a dense forest. It was frustrating both physically and mentally. The toughest part about the film was finding the cast. I was doubtful if I will be able to cast the right person for the film. The film has one of the most complicated characters that I have created so far.”

Kamala revolves around a story happening in 36 hours.

“While casting, I had thought of almost all existing actors of our industry but I felt if I cast any of them, the film will require a different treatment. Our protagonist is Safar, a high-level broker who is not highly educated or qualified but enjoys a luxurious life. He is a self-made man with basic human traits. After thinking for so long regarding the actor, nothing really worked out,” he recalled.

Further he added, “That's when I was reminded of Aju Varghese. He is a close friend of mine and has acted in almost all my films. The saying that we remember close people only at the last moment stood true in this case. I messaged him that 'it's time for you to be a hero. A script is ready for you.' We then talked for hours and the very next day he messaged me saying he read my message several times but was yet to come to terms.”

Though the trailer gives a glimpse of the female lead, nothing much is revealed about the character or the actress who plays the role. Ask about the female lead, Ranjith assures that he himself will announce the new face in a couple of days. “She has delivered an amazing job and I am sure that everyone will love once the film is out,” he said.

“The film is a search by Safar to find if Kamala is a human, a concept, his imagination, his ghostly illusion or something within. That's the basic element integrating the incidents that come his way and the point where his search ends is where the film concludes,” he explained.

Ask him how he manages to pull off a movie within a short span of time and he laughs away saying, “That's the way I work. Since I am from the corporate world, I set deadlines for myself before starting a project. And that helps the work go smoothly. Before the shooting itself I schedule a release date for myself and work in a manner to finish all the work within that time. I scribble down scripts on my cell phone itself. After writing Kamala, I decided not to make it and in the meantime I was writing other scripts as well. There should be a complete clarity regarding the script and making of a movie and it will be easy to shoot. When I stepped into filmmaking, I somehow wanted to make a single movie. Now, in 10 years, I could make 11 films and I am happy about it.”

“Howsoever the film works, I am genuinely happy for attempting a movie like this because it brought back my love for movies and thus Kamala will indeed be special one for me,” he concluded.