Tribals and tribulations

Debutant director Harikrishnan is keeping his fingers crossed ahead of the release of Aaram Vetrumai on September 8. Getting the required number of screens whilst competing with two big releases, has taken a toll on him, as is clear from his rather fatigued body language.

Expressing gratitude to his group of friends, including first-time producer Sakthivel, Hari says he decided to make a full-fledged film after trying his hand at a short film, which did not see the light of the day. "The positive was being able to convert the material I had into a full-length feature film. We worked on the graphics for some time before deciding to take the plunge." 

On the idea for his story, which is set some 900 years ago, Hari says it's something that had been playing in his mind for a long time. "I always wondered what the lifestyle of the ancient tribals would be like if they lived in the current times. I wrote my script along those lines, on the problems that could surface if a member of the community decided to live life on his own terms," he says, adding that he has injected a comical tone to the story, which also has 'plenty of action'.

Made on a shoe-string budget, Hari has had to cast newcomers as his leads. But with the presence of names like Yogi Babu, Azhagu and Cheran Raj, he hopes his film will be a strong debut vehicle for him.