A love story, against the backdrop of tsunami

Kayal, by director Prabhu Solomon, is a tribute to the families that lost their loved ones in the 2004 natural calamity

After two back-to-back commercial hits, director Prabhu Solomon is back with another romantic musical, Kayal .

While hilly terrains and elephants were pivotal elements in his earlier movies, Kayal will be a love story, with the sea playing an integral part. Describing it as a tribute to the people who lost their loved ones in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Prabhu Solomon says he plans to release the movie in December.

“We have put in a lot of efforts and travelled extensively from Kashmir to Kanyakumari,” say Prabhu Solomon, who filmed the crucial scenes showing waves in an artificial set at Ponneri.

In keeping with his trend of casting debutants, the ace director will introduce Anandhi, Chandran and Vincent in the lead roles. D. Imman has attempted to record the music for the film with live instruments, says Prabhu Solomon. Vetrivel Mahendran will debut as a cinematographer.

Recalling thrilling experiences while shooting the film, the director says, “We shot the song Engirundhu Vandhai in a village near Cherrapunji on a bridge made of roots.”

Just as his previous movies have,

Kayal too has tried to provide immense scope for the supporting artistes. Florent C. Pereira of Kalaignar TV says: “I play a

zamindar in the movie. It was a different experience to shoot in a 400-year-old bungalow in Sathur in Virudhunagar district.”

Sriya Reddy’s second innings

Actor Sriya Reddy, whose performances in films including Thimiru and Kanchivaram are still talked about, is back in Kollywood with the film Andava Kanom , being produced by JSK Film Corporation.

She had a taken a break from acting after her marriage to Vikram Krishna, actor Vishal’s brother. Producer, J. Sathish Kumar, explains that the film, as its title suggests, is about a search for a missing utensil ( anda ), which leads to a big fight in the village where the movie is set.

“The film is a laughter riot but has an underlying message. The story is set in a village far away from other human habitations. In the midst of the all the hullabaloo, a romance too happens,” he says.

Around 50 per cent of the movie has been shot, and it is expected to be wrapped up by mid-October.

Actor Sriya said that though after Kanjivaram she did get offers in films, they were not of substance. “I didn’t want to known as a sexy actor. I wanted my ten minutes that will make the viewers say now that’s an actor. I returned to acting because of Andava Kanom . It was my husband and brother-in-law who heard the story first.”