Adhik Ravichandran: I know that Bagheera won't be liked by everyone

The filmmaker talks about his upcoming psycho-thriller Bagheera, starring Prabhudheva in the lead
Adhik Ravichandran: I know that Bagheera won't be liked by everyone
Adhik Ravichandran: I know that Bagheera won't be liked by everyone

One thing that filmmaker Adhik Ravichandran has learnt from the overwhelming success of his debut, Trisha Illana Nayanthara, the debacle of AAA, and his eight-year-long journey in cinema is... Self-Awareness. Just like his debut, the filmmaker's upcoming film, Bagheera, starring Prabhudheva, is once again an adult entertainer.  "I know there are people who don't like my films. Youngsters are my target audience. It would be unrealistic to expect Bagheera to be a universal film," he says, adding that he would hate to deceive the audience watching his films. "Through the promos, I wanted to make it clear that Bagheera is not meant for the family audience. Luring them in by projecting the film as something else would be unjust. That's the reason I have mentioned films like Sigappu Rojakkal and Manmadhan as they too featured a psychologically affected protagonist."

Asked if political correctness ever limited his writing process, Adhik immediately replies, "Certainly not. Bagheera is probably not the right film to expect political correctness from. I have made it clear that the hero is a psychopath and he is bound to be wicked. You and I wouldn't and shouldn't do such things. But a fictional character can. Bagheera is definitely not a hero."

With criticisms being one of Adhik's greatest antagonists in his cinema career, the filmmaker strongly believes that films are always personal, and a film hated by one person could be celebrated by another. "People from various walks of life, going through various phases watch a film. If someone is madly in love, they will relish 96, and hate a TIN. But the same person might like TIN if they had just gone through a bitter break-up. I won't call Bagheera a great film but I am hopeful that this unabashed entertainer will find its own set of audience."

Another criticism levied against Adhik is definitely how the target audience of his films are men, and it doesn't really cater to the women in the audience. Will Bagheera be any different? "Audiences' reactions are unpredictable. Honestly, I found girls to equally like Bagheera in the test screenings," he says.

Having recently starred in a couple of films as an actor, it is interesting to note that drawing performances from actors seem to be Adhik's favourite process in filmmaking. "I have the practice of acting out scenes to my actors. Prabhu master initially found this weird, but in a couple of days he understood my expectations and got into the skin of the character." Bagheera stars a bevvy of heroines, including Amyra Dastur, Ramya Nambeesan, Janani Iyer, Sanchita Shetty, Gayathrie Shankar, and Sakshi Agarwal, and Adhik asserts that putting together the cast was seamless due to one main reason. "I guess Prabhudheva master's name did the trick. All the heroines got on board without a second thought as they were eager to act with him."

Despising the tag of being someone who only makes a certain genre of films, Adhik says, "I made TIN as an adult comedy to get a break as a filmmaker. Though I wanted to do something different with AAA a lot of things went wrong with that film. When I wanted to make my next film, I was once again expected to make an adult entertainer. So within the limited options I had, I opted to make a psycho-thriller. I am waiting to prove to everyone that I am more than this." It is in this pursuit that Adhik is coming up with the Vishal-starrer Mark Antony. "It is drastically different from all the three films I made. I entered the industry with a passion to make action films, and I am realising that dream with Mark Antony. It will be a film for everyone, and will make my new innings in cinema."

Interestingly, Adhik shares that his brief journey with Ajith on the sets of Nerkonda Paarvai sowed the seeds for Mark Antony. "I met Ajith sir while working on Bagheera. The conversations gave me great clarity about not just films, but life too. I reworked my priorities, and it lead me to pen the script of Mark Antony," says Adhik, who reiterates that every day has taught him a new lesson, and made him a more evolved filmmaker. "I made TIN when I was barely 23. Now, I don't completely align with the ideas of the film. Edho oru sandharpom illa yaaro oru manushanga theva padranga la? Edhu right, wrong nu solla. A couple of days I spent with Ajith sir redefined my perception of life. Right now, I am just looking forward to more such experiences that will redefine me."

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