Inspector Rishi Interview: Into the world of superstitions and serial murders

Back in 2018, when OTT was still at its nascent stage, Thiru Thiru Thuru Thuru director Nandhini JS stepped foot into the world of web series with a vampire rom-com, Nila Nila Odi Vaa. Six years later, Nandhini returns to the thriving OTT landscape, this time collaborating with Prime Video for Inspector Rishi. On how the streaming world has changed during her hiatus, the filmmaker says, "Back in 2017, when I thought of doing Nila Nila Odi Vaa, most actors did not understand web series and asked whether I was talking about a TV serial. After Covid, OTT became the most dominant platform in the industry, so much so that people now prefer streaming over theatrical releases." 

Inspector Rishi revolves around the titular character, played by Naveen Chandra, who is tasked with investigating a series of gruesome murders in a forest. The locals of the forest attribute the killings to supernatural beings. Nandhini says that she has always been fascinated by nature spirits. "Back in the day, folklore about spirits and gods who protected the forests prevented people from stepping into the woods at night. This also helped with environmental conservation; for example, by placing a God's stone in front of a tree, it would be protected from being cut down. I have grown up listening to folklore that revolves around forest spirits, and I have always wanted to explore it through Cinema," says the director.

Naveen Chandra, who is fresh off his portrayal as a villainous cop in Jigarthanda Double X, reveals that he plays a wildly different police officer in Inspector Rishi. He then goes on to reveal how Nandhini helped him create the character. "I am an introvert, but when I heard the script for Inspector Rishi, I got so excited about my character that I started performing more expressively. On the third day of the shoot, when I was still trying to figure Rishi out, Nandhi asked me to tone down my expressions and performed the character for me, making it extremely easy to understand what she wanted," he says.

The supernatural crime thriller series also stars Malini Jeevarathinam, Sunainaa, Kanna Ravi, Elango Kumaravel, and Sri Krishna Dayal, among others. Malini says that she chose the role because she was able to relate to the character. "Sub Inspector Chithra Lokesh, my character, is someone who heavily relies upon documents and documentation. As a documentary filmmaker in real life, I was able to relate to this character." Further, Nandhini adds the specific instructions she gave Malini for her performance. "I didn’t want her to act, as such. I just wanted her to be herself, even though her character is not as mature or advanced as she is in real life. I kept reminding Malini that Chithra is just a beginner, a 'baby queer', who is still figuring things out."

While Naveen, Kanna Ravi and Malini play police officers, Sunainaa, Dayal and Kumaravel play forest officers. Kanna Ravi says that all the actors strived to give their best performance, mutually helping each other improvise on sets. "Every actor felt content with what they had gotten, and we all wanted to do our best with what we had. Even though Naveen plays the lead, we all have our spotlight moments," he says.

Sunainaa says that she had to step out of her comfort zone to step into the shoes of forest officer Kathy. "Naturally, forest guards are very connected to the forest, and I am someone who was born and brought up in the city. I am easily frightened by the dark, and I don’t prefer going alone anywhere. But a forest guard will not squirm at the sight of leeches, and will definitely not be scared of the dark. I had to step out of my comfort zone to get used to the ways of the forest," says Sunainaa.

To give an example of the camaraderie the actors shared onscreen and offscreen, Nandhini recalls a scene from the series. "There was a chase sequence where Kanna Ravi had to run behind Naveen. However, Kanna is extremely fast and he overtook Naveen, and I expected the latter to ask me to tell Kanna to run a little slow. On the contrary, Naveen said that the scene would be more natural if Kanna ran ahead of him. That’s how close-knit the team was."

On the thematic comparisons with other supernatural thriller series like Suzhal: The Vortex and The Village, actor Elango Kumaravel reveals that apart from the genre, Inspector Rishi will provide a new experience to the audience by focusing more on forests. "Those who watch Inspector Rishi will learn a lot more about forests. The ignorance we all have towards the forest will change after watching the series," says a confident Elango Kumaravel.