When it comes to worries and unwarranted detractions, Kamal Haasan says he just ‘sleeps them off.’
So with all the controversy around his new film Uttama Villain, which has opened to packed houses in India (yesterday) and the UAE, is the actor sleeping it off a trifle too much? And is he now relieved that the film has released, although almost a month later than was initially announced?
Kamal laughs. “I have never cared about these issues to feel relieved. I just laugh at such incidents, and accept them as a fact of life.”
He is talking about the protests that erupted from political and religious groups about the film before its release. “It never ceases to surprise me though that they always come up with conclusions without watching the film,” adds Kamal.
Kamal does not feel jittery about how Uttama Villain will perform at the box-office. “That era of experiencing stage-fright is long over in my life,” says Kamal.
“People who invest [in films] may feel jittery before their films’ release but not people who invest their life in movies,” he adds.
“The moment I make the decision to write this film and make it, the jitters are over. I am only concerned about that one man [the audience] and whether he will say it is good or it is bad.”
Kamal has indeed invested his life into movies. He had unhesitatingly taken the plunge into production (Uttama Villain too is co-produced by his home company) simply because it helps him make films the way he intends them to be made. “There are very few producers who give that freedom.”
Having once observed that ‘filmmaking is like war, and many people could let you down including your soldiers,’ Kamal says there are also a number of extraneous factors.
“If the film is a trifle long, then theatre owners complain about not having people for the second show. If the costume maker needs not 1 metre but 1.1 metre of brocade, the supplier complains about who will buy the rest of it. That is the way it works.”
Kamal has seen it all, and more. After all, he has been a defining pillar of Tamil cinema for nearly five decades in an illustrious, four-time National Award-winning, super-hit heavy career that started as child artist in a Malayalam film way back in 1962.
He has made his name and fame all over India, acting in multiple languages including in Bollywood (where his Ek Duje Keliye’s success spawned a series of loves stories) and beyond, as one of those remarkable actors, rather than ‘stars.’
Above all, he has been his own man. Never cowering away from a good principled fight, more open about his personal life than most stars, Kamal has consciously tried to defy image traps.
That is a mighty achievement given that successful Indian actors are invariably stereotyped and they must live up to a set image repeatedly until the audience tires and backs out.
With Kamal, unpredictability is the only predictable thing. That is why it doesn’t surprise you when he titles his movie as Uttama Villain (A Perfect Villain).
But can villains be perfect? Can they be heroes? “Why not,” asks Kamal. “It is all in the perspective. Winston Churchill was a hero for many, and a villain for others; so was Gandhi.”
With Uttama Villain, he says, “we had a fantastic idea. There was no reason for us to doubt its premise and people who have watched the preview say it will set a new trend.”
He is confident that “you can watch it with your 3-year-old kid and 90-year-old grandmother and step out of the theatre without feeling an iota of embarrassment.”
Kamal has consciously tried to see ‘the other side’ with most of his movies. And because he does not mince words about his views on religion (he is an atheist) or politics (he hasn’t endorsed any party) or business (he is not the every-day brand ambassador – and has not endorsed a product for over 50 years), his films invariably run into trouble.
But that doesn’t deter him from his convictions. “Everything I have made in my life is because of movies, so why should I hesitate to give it all back to the industry,” says Kamal. “I do not need to carry any excess weight.”
In Uttama Villain, Kamal is seen with long-time professional associates Ramesh Aravind (who also directs the film) and actor Jayaram. He attributes their long-term camaraderie to the fact that “they respect what I am doing and vice versa. Moreover, they are all well-trained actors and they understand the spirit of the film.”
A highpoint of Uttama Villain is the fusion of Kerala’s artform Theyyam with Tamil Nadu’s Koothu tradition. “We wanted a new flavour, unlike Bharatanatyam, which has been used a lot. The beauty of Theyyam is that it is not a commercial art. There are very few steps, if you may, and the movements are very simple. There is greater veneration for it in Kerala with the performer going into the soul of the character.” This, Kamal adds, is integral to the theme of the film, which is set in two time zones.
Uttama Villain also has veteran directors K Viswanath and late K Balachander, both of them his mentors. He sees their presence in the film as a sort of ‘gurudakshina’ (tribute to the masters).
“Tell me in which university can you find a guru who will not only teach you but also pay you for studying? They were both mentors, and anything I do out of my respect for them can never be enough.”
After Papanasham, a remake of the Malayalam film Drishyam, Kamal will next be seen in a stylish flick, which he says “will not be a breezy thriller but more like a fast-paced storm on screen.”
He also does not rule out collaborating with his peer Rajnikanth. “We had made a commitment to each other that we will act in a film the other produces.” On their friendship, Kamal says: “We are from an alma mater of sort and had the same tutelage (under K Balachander).”
The boarding announcement can be overheard and he has a flight to catch. If there is impatience beneath the surface, he is not showing it. Kamal Haasan is respectfully calm.
Respect, indeed, is top in the line for the veteran actor. He might appear irreverent when it comes to conventions, but as an actor and film professional, he is willing to give it all.
That shows in every film that bears the name, Kamal Haasan. The name doesn’t sell products but it stands for sincerity, conviction and cinema with a creative soul.
