Sameer Abdul calls himself a mainstream writer, but his body of work so far, even if limited, is proof enough that he dares to dream bigger. Within the framework of 'mainstream cinema', Sameer has experimented with unique, interesting ideas right from his debut, Adventures of Omanakuttan. The film, which he co-wrote with director Rohith VS, was a quirky comedy about an introvert assuming fake personas to flirt with women before an accident leaves him grappling with amnesia. The writer-director duo's second collaboration, Iblis, was a fantasy comedy that explored themes such as magical realism and the afterlife. Then came Rorschach, Sameer's debut as an independent writer and also his most popular work yet. The Mammootty-starrer, which broke all conventions of a superstar vehicle, was an edgy revenge thriller with supernatural and psychological layers.
Sameer is now reuniting with Rorschach director Nisam Basheer after four years for i, Nobody, another attempt that the writer refuses to bracket into any one particular genre as it has socio political elements, a heist angle, and family drama.
As the film, headlined by Prithviraj Sukumaran and Parvathy Thiruvothu, is slated for release on July 9, we catch up with Sameer for a detailed chat on the film and his inclinations as a writer.
Excerpts:
All your films so far have had unconventional ideas that carry the risk of not appealing to a wider audience...
There's no conscious effort to try something out of the box; I just want to try different genres. Since my tastes generally align with the majority, I wish to believe my writings would resonate with everyone. Although the first two films weren't commercially successful, I was very confident while doing them. Even Rorschach isn't an audience-friendly film, but it had the Mammootty factor and the advantage of releasing during the post-Covid era when viewers were far more receptive to such attempts. Actor Prasanth Alexander told me after its release, "You haven't changed, the audience has." But the bottom line is, I write all my films for the audience, not for myself. I see no use in a film getting appreciation after its theatrical release.
But wouldn't Adventures of Omanakuttan and Iblis still serve as strong calling cards, even if they weren't commercial successes?
It's personally beneficial because artists are generally welcoming of us while pitching new scripts. They will only expect quirky attempts from me, not mass entertainers, and that's an advantage. But what about the investors and the artists who were part of those films? Individual fame hardly matters.
Prithviraj describes you as a writer who approaches the most ordinary situations in extraordinary ways. Do you consider that your biggest strength?
As a writer, I also need to consider the viewer in me who regularly consumes content from across the world. While writing a scene, my mind automatically starts questioning, "Wait, I've seen this before... It's already there in that film..." It only pushes me to prod further and look at things from different perspectives. In a way, you can call this deliberate cliché-breaking. It may not always work, but it seems to have worked well in i, Nobody.
Unlike Iblis and Rorschach, you are dealing with real-world stories and characters devoid of any fantasies in i, Nobody. Did you find any difference in scripting?
I would say scripting a Rorschach is much easier because I'm going completely imaginative there. I simply have to follow the character and convincingly create its story world. That way, I also have the freedom of leaving it to the audience to decipher if there's actually a ghost haunting Luke Antony (Mammootty) or if it's all his imagination. I can't do that in i, Nobody, which is set in a real world with a lot of sociopolitical references. Since it is also based on some recent real-life incidents, it demanded basic research about police investigations and media reporting. Although I follow the news and keep myself updated, I wasn’t sure if I had enough knowledge to make a film on it.
What triggered the actual idea for i, Nobody?
For Rorschach, it was the interval point where the protagonist feels the ghost's presence and says, “I came looking for you”. We worked on the story before and after that, but nothing like that for this film. After Rorschach, Nisam and I were keen on doing an action film, but we didn't have a subject. So we created a character and tried placing him in the midst of a crime. The sociopolitical elements were not preplanned because I didn't know if I was capable of incorporating them correctly, but it happened organically as we followed the character. That's when we even realised such incidents have happened recently.
Are you naturally inclined to stories of grey-shaded people?
In Rorschach, it was an intentional call to make everyone grey-shaded. But with i, Nobody, we are trying to explore if Rajeevan is truly grey-shaded or if it's just the society's perception of him. Each member of the audience can interpret him differently. We have tried breaking the general misconception that a character has to be the epitome of goodness for the audience to root for him.
Prithviraj was balancing multiple projects while shooting i, Nobody. What was it like collaborating with someone who was constantly switching between such different worlds?
During the pitching stage itself, he told us he might have to juggle our film with SS Rajamouli's Varanasi and Meghna Gulzar's Daayra simultaneously. Nisam and I took it as an extra responsibility to ensure he felt i, Nobody was worth taking a break from Rajamouli's sets for. Having directed two films himself, Prithvi naturally thinks like a technician. But perhaps because he's aware of his reputation for getting too creatively involved, he consciously stayed away from that this time. It has also got to do with the trust he had in us. Since we gave Prithvi complete clarity about Rajeevan as a character, we could see him thoroughly enjoying the role.
Unlike his larger-than-life roles like in Varanasi or Khalifa, this film presents him as an ordinary man... a nobody. How hard was it to achieve that since Prithviraj has an innate charisma and starry aura that is hard to ignore?
Yes, the character in i, Nobody is someone you wouldn't notice in a crowd. It's easy for us to write like that, but because of the reasons you mentioned, it demands double the effort from Prithviraj. We could see that in the way he talks or adjusts his body language. At the risk of bragging, I'd say it will be hard to find Prithviraj in the film.
How much of that transformation was built into the writing?
The character in this film was conceived as a nobody, and it remained like that even after Prithviraj came on board. We haven't added anything to suit his strengths. We did that in Rorschach as well. One of Mammookka's assets is his dialogue delivery and voice modulation, but for the first two weeks in Rorschach, we didn't give him a single dialogue. Most of Luke's talking happens inside his head.
Given Parvathy's reputation for choosing roles carefully, what made you feel she was the right fit?
She was one of the last to be cast. We were initially hesitant because Prithvi and Parvathy have acted multiple times before and don't make a fresh pair. Though we looked for a few other options, we weren't convinced with any of them and decided to go ahead with Parvathy. Even then, we weren't sure if she would take up a commercial film. Since we knew the character was strong, we took a chance and sent her the script. She had plenty of doubts, but once convinced, she was fully committed. After watching the film, I can say the extra effort she put in has considerably elevated the role. It's definitely one of her recent best.