When Sabu Cyril began working on Baahubali he knew there were two things he couldn’t, or rather shouldn’t, use—glass and gun powder. This was a period when there was no glass or gun powder. The veteran production designer solved the problem with polished, translucent stone instead. This is the kind of on-his-feet, out-of-the-box thinking that has made Sabu Cyril one of India’s best. He was speaking at the second edition of the Expertalk series organised by the association of ad filmmakers, I AM (Indian Adfilm Makers) in Kochi.
Baahubali
Starting with Iyer the Great in 1990, when technology as an aid to art direction was non-existent, to the mammoth (in every sense), visual extravaganza Baahubali I & II, the journey has been inspiring. Baahubali is his ‘current’ piece de resistance. His filmography needs no introduction— Thenmaavin Kombathu , Kaalapani , Hey Ram , Om Shanti Om , Ashoka , Anniyan , Enthiran , Kannathil Muthamittal , Ra.One— to name a minuscule portion of films in a career spanning more than 25 years, and many awards. The sheer scale and success of Baahubali once again trains the focus on his work.
Making Baahubali
Now that both editions of the film are done, it is a good time to ask about which of the two was more difficult. “The first one obviously, we didn’t know what we were getting into. There was the fear factor, with the second one we knew what we were getting into, though it was harder, and involved more work, the first one was challenging. By the time we were working on the conclusion, we knew exactly what to do and how. We enjoyed the process,” he says.
The ‘process’ is fascinating; he explains how the team worked on creating the fictional Mahishmathi and Kunthala. When one sees the film, the detailing might be lost upon an average viewer, but a lot of thought went into how each ‘kingdom’ was conceptualised. Granite was used to ‘build’ the larger kingdom of Mahishmathi with almost no detailing as opposed to the more feminine Kunthala, for which marble was used as were more floral, feminine elements for detailing.
Technology, CGI (Computer Generated Images) particularly, forms a major part of the film’s production design. Sabu is open to using technology for his work. He says, “I like to know everything about everything, I am curious about what NASA is doing. I want to know about whatever is the latest in technology. Why not use technology when it is available?” CGI requires time and money, and it works to an extent. The close-ups of the animals, where it is interactive, require the actual ‘thing’ where the production designer’s skill set comes in handy, he adds.
Innovation is a production designer’s stock in trade. A skill he acquired early on in his career. He remembers working on the sets of Uncle Bun where he was constantly innovating, pushed by the director, Bhadran. “Bhadran would ask for all kinds of things, in the last moment and I would be innovating. Once he asked for a ‘crystal’ jar and I had to fabricate one out of a plastic bottle!” The train sequence—a derailed ‘train’ falling of a bridge, in Iyer The Great is still remembered, and that was a time before the technology we have today or even 10 years back.
Excited by work
The journey, from Iyer the Great to his latest film, is one he has enjoyed. “I am excited the same way today as I was when I started. The experience over the years has taught me so much, the more you know the more you want to know.” Having evinced interest in science, technology, and even sci-fi films, would it translate into a film directed by him? He refuses, “Today I have many friends in the industry. I am the best at what I do, and there are directors who are very good at their jobs. Why would I then want to direct a film? If, however, somebody is making such a film, I wouldn’t mind collaborating.”
His next project is Sundar C’s Sanghamitra , a period drama. In Malayalam, there is Odiyan and Randamoozham. Of being away from Malayalam films, he says, “Most of the productions designers today in the industry have worked with me and are my protégés. How can I compete with my own people?”
