One of director GNR Kumaravelan’s childhood dreams was to become a cop. “I’ve always seen policemen as heroes,” he says. That’s perhaps why the director, after two outings on the big screen revolving around the men in uniform ( Haridas and Wagah ), is getting into cop zone yet again, with his upcoming film with Arun Vijay in the lead. Excerpts from a quick chat with the filmmaker:
Your 2013 film Haridas had a cop in the lead role, and your upcoming film with Arun Vijay too has him playing a cop...
Yes he is! While it’s too early to divulge details, it will be an action thriller with elements that will appeal to family audiences. I have tried my best to keep the cop as close to reality, and not exaggerate his actions. My earlier flick, Wagah , had some unrealistic elements, but here, I have kept the script as real as possible.
What attracts you towards the lives of cops?
I see their positive side. I feel that every human being has positives and negatives, and that there’s no point in looking at the latter... I try to ignore it. With cops, there are a lot of positives, and as a filmmaker, I want to look at that side.
How much of research has gone into the script?
From the time of Haridas , I have been in close touch with many cops, from all levels, for research work. In fact, retired IPS officer K Vijay Kumar, who is famous for Operation Cocoon that led to the death of Veerappan, helped me a lot during the scripting and filming stage of Wagah . I have got several inputs from them during those two films, and for the current one I’m working on.
Kollywood has long been fascinated with cop subjects. Which among them is your favourite?
I revisit Rajinikanth’s cop act in Moondru Mugam often, and am also a fan of Kamal Haasan in Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu . Another cop film I really like is Nana Patekar’s Hindi film, Ab Tak Chhappan .
Arun Vijay has donned the khaki earlier as well. So, what prompted your decision to cast him in this?
His cop outing in Kuttram23 was as a high-profile policeman. In my film, however, he will play a ground-level policeman. ‘Munishkanth’ Ramadoss will be playing a key role and we are in the process of finalising the rest of the cast and technical team. We will start shooting in the city later this month.
