S itcoms, especially those based on current events, have a niche audience in Kerala. Almost every channel has a series or two based on contemporary issues that take a tongue-in-cheek look at events that dominate the news. One such series on Asianet is ‘Vellanakalude Nadu’, which derives its name from a famous Mohanlal-starrer on the challenges faced by a small-time contractor who is driven to the wall by red-tapism and a corrupt political leadership. Helmed by veteran K.V. Sasikumar, senior producer, Asianet, the series is made up of different episodes, each centred on an issue that is in the news. Excerpts from an interview…
On the concept…
This is a series that is based on issues, events and topics that are the talk of the town. All of us have an opinion about it and it affects our lives in many ways. Since many channels have programmes on corruption and the bureaucracy, we did not want to limit our programme to those issues alone. ‘Vellanakalude Nadu’ is not only about corruption or red-tapism. It includes all that, plus issues such as the ‘kiss of love’ protests that rocked Kerala, political developments, social issues and so on. Each episode focuses on one such theme. Since it is an in-house production, we are able to keep an eye on the quality of the programme.
Developing the theme
We have a team working for the programme. The challenge, of course, is to find a suitable topic each week. Brainstorming sessions help us zero in on one topic and then, again, there is a team that develops the idea, plot and the dialogues.
It would be unfair to name only one person at this stage. We, however, try and see that the episodes tackle a wide range of interesting themes.
There are many aspects that vex the common man and those are all potential stories for us. Politicians of all kinds unleash gimmicks to keep themselves in the limelight but there is hardly a single person who is deceived by their unctuous deeds.
The cast
What’s interesting about is that the same cast and the same characters appear in all the episodes but the situations differ. For instance, if Manjulan, enacted by Senthil Kumar, essays a policeman in one episode, he appears as a corporation employee in another, but the innate traits of the character remain the same. Manjulan has a stammer and that is constant no matter who he enacts. That helps the actors retain the individuality of the character. Anjana Appukuttan enacts Kunjumol, a homemaker enamoured of serials. Kunjumol remains Kunjumol in all the episodes but we place her in different situations.
The actors have done a great job and that is one of the strengths of the series. Vinod Manasi, Abhilash, Sini Varghese and Mattannur Sivadasan are also in the cast.
The mini-screen journey
I have been with Asianet right from the beginning and it has been a fruitful journey. I was perhaps one of the first directors of our in-house serials and programmes. Directing serials and series such as ‘Engilum Ente Gopalakrishnan’ and ‘Sanmanasullavarkku Samadhanam’, which had Suraj Venjarmoodu in the cast, gave me a lot of interesting experiences. ‘Sanmanasullavarku Samadhanam’, for instance completed 400 episodes. Reality shows came later and I directed three such shows (‘Bharathakkanmarude Sradhakku’, ‘Sundari Neeyum, Sundaran Njanum’ and ‘Dance Dance’) back to back recently.
It is quite a relief to get back to directing serials. But I prefer fiction to reality bytes.
The big picture…
Coming up sometime in the future, I hope, is my cinema. That has always been my ambition and I hope to reach there soon.
(‘Vellanakalude Nadu’ airs on Asianet at 10.30 p.m. on Saturdays)
