It isn’t every day that all the planets align. It perhaps happened when director A. Kesavan approached M. S. Kathiravan, a young producer, for funds to make a short film. After listening to the story, the producer agreed to finance the project, but insisted the director make a feature film instead. “I couldn’t believe my ears,” says Kesavan. “I wanted to make the short film only to show it as part of my portfolio, and convince producers of my talent. But Kathiravan seemed already convinced.”
Only the final portions of Avalukkenna Alagiya Mugam , an intermingling of four love stories, remain to be shot. “Think of Mani Ratnam’s Aayitha Ezhuthu and how three lives intersect in it. The four stories in my film similarly converge at one point.” I tell him it’s hard enough to write one novel love story, let alone four. He explains that’s why he has categorised his love stories into different types, with the aim of making them appeal to various segments of the audience. “There’s one that will appeal to youngsters. One is humorous. The third is set in the slums, while the fourth is sentimental. As you can see, I’ve put in a lot of work to give each its unique identity,” he says. Two are inspired by incidents that occurred in the lives of the director’s friends.
While all the lead roles are played by newcomers (Vijay Karthick, Poovarasan, Sabaree and Vicky), ‘Powerstar’ Srinivasan plays a guest role. Avalukkenna Alagiya Mugam is slated for release in May.
