The making of a national award winner

Actor-director Samuthirakani talks about his arduous journey to achieve his dreams.

March 29, 2016 10:28 am | Updated 04:11 pm IST - Chennai

Though everyone hoped Samuthirakani’s fine act in the grisly 'Visaranai' would fetch him national recognition, when it happened, the actor-director was the last to know. Photo: Special Arrangement

Though everyone hoped Samuthirakani’s fine act in the grisly 'Visaranai' would fetch him national recognition, when it happened, the actor-director was the last to know. Photo: Special Arrangement

Circa 1989. A wiry 17-year-old boy with film dreams leans against a boulder, his curly hair framed by papaya leaves. He looks afar in the photograph, seeking something in the infinite distance.

That boy grew up to be the lanky Samuthirakani, known for his many avatars on screen and his prowess as a director. The >National Award for Best Supporting Actor ( >Visaranai ) sits lightly on him, and he insists he’ll always be the boy from Seithur, a town near Rajapalayam.

Though everyone hoped Samuthirakani’s fine act in the grisly film would fetch him national recognition, when it happened, the actor-director was the last to know. “I was dubbing for Amma Kanakku and my phone was on silent mode. There were 32 missed calls when I got back to it, and director Venkat Prabhu came on line saying ‘Anna, Vaazhuthukkal’. The world knew of it before I did,” he laughs.

''Visaranai' disturbed us psychologically'

His voice softens when speaking of the film that won him the much-feted honour. “I still have not got over Visaranai , and its making. We would shoot at night, and when I hit the bed at 6 in the morning, I would have nightmares and all the horror would revisit us. The film disturbed us psychologically. I’ve promised myself I won’t do a policeman’s role for some time,” he says.

For a while now, Samuthirakani has been making a name for himself as a performer to look out for, be it in the title role of a conscientious teacher in >Saatai , the blow-hot, blow-cold father of > Velaiyilla Pattathari or the silent menacing renegade ex-policeman in the recent >Kaadhalum Kadandhu Pogum . And, to think, there was a time when all he faced was rejection. “For three years, from 1992-1994, I tried my luck as an actor. And then, wondering if I had a face to match my aspirations, I decided to explore direction.”

The dream of cinema

That Samuthirakani was partly broken and dejected, but he decided to persevere. After all, he had once run away from home at 15, with Rs. 130 stolen from his father’s pocket, only to fuel his film dreams. “Do you know, I watched my first film in Class VIII, when my friend dragged me along to watch Mudhal Mariyaadhai ? The film shook me. Then on, every night, I would watch a film. When the money from home dried up, I sold sundal and murukku in the theatre so that I could watch for free. When my family forbade me from entering the theatre, I would lie on a boulder outside and listen to the dialogues. And then, in 1987, I ran away from home clad in my drawers without even knowing where in Madras I wanted to go.”

It is from here that Samuthirakani’s life took on a different hue. In all that desolation, he met saviours who changed his outlook to life. A policeman found him sleeping on a newspaper under the Gemini flyover. “He took me on his cycle to the station, ensured I was safe and convinced me to return. I don’t remember his name, but he’s my God.”

Once the money ran out, he set back home, reaching Villupuram with just 15 paise in his pocket. The owner of the erstwhile SLN hotel on the highway offered to fund his return, but the boy chose to work for a week there, earning Rs. 35.

He went back to a worried family. His mother hit him, but his father looked at the defiant boy, and told his wife: “He’s searching for something you and I don’t understand, but let’s help him.” Samuthirakani promised he would complete his education. A month later, his father died.

The heartbroken son sought a degree in Mathematics before he swapped it for the arclights. In the meanwhile, his brother kept clicking photos of his film-crazy sibling, framed against the green fields and other scenic spots. “Incidentally, two days ago, he sent me one of my early photos, the one with the papaya leaves. I laughed. Who would’ve imagined I would come this far?”

Lessons from K.Balachander

Biding his time to turn actor, Samuthirakani worked with director Sundar K. Vijayan, and veteran K. Balachander, assisting in nearly 3,000 episodes of teleserials, and completing a part-time degree in Law before KB told him he could strike out on his own in the year 2000. He went on to direct 1,500 episodes, and has so far helmed more than 10 films, across Tamil, Telugu and Kannada.

After Subramaniapuram...

But, the universe, more specifically Sasikumar, conspired, and Samuthirakani donned the greasepaint for Subramaniapuram . There has been no looking back since. “I’d almost given up on my dreams. But, Subramaniapuram proved that if you love something enough, it will find you.”

The popularity that followed might have changed many, but not the boy from Seithur. “I still have my BSA black cycle with a brown seat, my Splendor bike…I use them occasionally, though there’s a fleet of cars at home now. There was a time when the sidewalk outside Ganapathy Government School in Trustpuram was my home during many hopeless nights. Even now, I stop by and sit there just to remind myself of where it all began.”

But, Samuthirakani refuses to wallow in memories of misery. “The past must ground you, and I’m the kind who likes to move on. When everyone was celebrating the 100th day of Nadodigal, I’d already finished shooting its Telugu version. I take ownership and revel in something only till I’m creating it.”

Everything associated with the film industry fascinates Samuthirakani. Even dubbing for others. “I want to learn all there is to learn in the industry,” he says.

The next time he faces the camera as a National Award winning actor, would anything have changed? “Not at all. I’ll continue to be the same jolly chap. Every day on the sets, I wait like a newcomer to see what the director has for me. I’ll fall if he asks me to, cry on his instructions… But, the day I feel this is enough, I’ll get back to what I would have been: a farmer.”

Now that he’s proved himself as an actor and director, has his first love changed? Samuthirakani laughs. “I’ve slogged to become a director; it’s taken a lot out of me. So, yes, that’s my new love. But, I won’t deny that acting gives me a high. I become another person once I hear the word, ‘Action’. The best part is that after ‘Cut’, I usually get back to being the boy who once dreamt in the fields.”

Coming up next

Samuthirakani has already wrapped up his next directorial, Appa , and will start work on Kitna , once Dhansika completes Kabali . The film will have two cuts — a tighter version and a longer, director’s cut.

Also read:

With his production venture 'Visaranai' bagging three National Awards including best Tamil film, Dhanush said that the joy was “triple.” >Read here
Samuthirakani on learning the tricks of the small screen from K. Balachander, under whom he worked as an assistant for films such as `Kalki' and `Parthale Paravasam'. >Read here
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