Actor Rahman, who recently starred as Jyothika’s husband in Kollywood movie 36 Vayadhinile, is ready to experiment a bit now. The 48-year-old actor, who has been in the industry since the early 1980s, recently signed a movie by a 21-year-old debutant director, Karthik Naren. Titled Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru , the starcast of the cop thriller includes all fresh faces, barring Rahman.
“No one of my calibre and experience would necessarily agree to be directed by amateurs, but I realised that someone should be willing to open doors to fresh talent. So here I am, working with a fresh team. I have finished a few days of work, and I must say it has been more than satisfactory,” says Rahman. “Also, I feel good working with youngsters. I haven’t aged mentally; probably that’s why it shows on my physique too. Even today, my nieces tell me that I am very kiddish,” laughs Rahman.
While the plot is nothing new, the way the script was presented to him had him agree to sign on the dotted line. “The team had done its homework. They narrated the script to me in a way that was both appealing and convincing. Not just that, ever since we started working together, all schedules are being carried out in a well-structured way, just like any director with, say, 20 years of experience would do,” he says. “These youngsters have so many fresh ideas to offer to the industry, and I decided that I was ready to take the risk of giving them a chance,” adds Rahman, who also recently finished shooting for another cop thriller, Pagadi Aattam .
Besides Kollywood, the actor is busy with Malayalam film Ente Sathyanweshana Pareekshakal (translates to the title of Gandhi’s autobiography, My Experiments with Truth ), where he plays a lawyer, and has another, Lavender , running in the theatres. “I am very picky when it comes to Malayalam movies. I want to do only the choicest of movies there, but in Tamil, I do it for a nice script and making money,” he says candidly.
However, the most memorable project from his repertoire is Pudhu Pudhu Arthangal (1989), directed by the late K Balachander. “That was the biggest milestone in my career in the Tamil industry. It helped me set my two legs permanently in Kollywood,” he says. “Of course, everyone’s first movie always holds a special place. In that sense, Koodevide (1983) directed by P. Padmarajan will also be one of the unforgettable ones,” he adds.
What’s next? Rahman will continue doing what he does best — acting. “I have also written a few scripts that are yet to see light of the day,” he says hesitatingly. “They are all cry-baby stories. I would really like to see them made as movies someday,” he says.
