Ken Karunaas: 'I wanted Youth to echo the Attakathi vibe'
It is interesting how the 'next generation' is always seen by the previous generation as lazy and lacking direction. We have seen such representation in a lot of our films. But this coming week, a group of youngsters, led by Ken Karunaas, is coming up with a film that sees laziness as relaxed and a lack of direction as free-flowing. Youth, which marks Ken's directorial debut, chronicles friendship, love, and ambition among a group of school-going youngsters. In this conversation with CE, Ken, who has penned the script and headlines the film, is joined by his co-stars Anishma Anilkumar, Meenakshi Dinesh, and Abison Thevarasa as they talk about the film, different kinds of romances, and chasing highs.
Excerpts:
Ken, is Youth your biography?
Ken Karunaas: It is the collective story of the school days of a group of boys born between 1997 and 2002. No one has written a story with our years in school as the setting, so that simple thought evolved into Youth. Although the film shares the title with Vijay sir's film, we had a different title initially. But when the story evolved into a more commercial one, we wanted an alternative title. I wanted Youth to echo the Attakathi vibe. Director Ammamuthu Surya (whose debut film is being backed by Sivakarthikeyan) suggested 'Youth,' and we felt it was as energetic as the demographic it represents.
Anishma, what made you sign this film?
Anishma Anilkumar: Sirai was the first Tamil film I signed, and interestingly, I got this opportunity because Sirai's director, Suresh Rajakumari, had worked with Ken in Vetri Maaran's Asuran. He was the one who put a good word on my behalf, and I got this opportunity.
It is clear that all actors were able to improvise a lot with your character and your scenes. How did you navigate filming your scenes?
Abison Thevarasa: I worked on this project with the mindset that this is the space that I am most comfortable with. But the belief that 'I am doing a great job' never crept into my mind until I started hearing it from other people. So that validation was a great help. Ken had a wonderful design for my character.
KK: Once he stepped into the character's shoes, a lot of characteristics that were written had to be discarded. But even though he went in a different direction than what I had in mind, it came out very well.
AT: I had a lot of fun with my character, as the sets were fun, and so was the story.
Meenakshi, while Youth explores a certain kind of love, your previous Tamil project, Love Marriage (2025), had a different representation of love. How was it to deal with such differing romance tracks?
Meenakshi Dinesh: Love Marriage is about a May-December romance between my character and Vikram Prabhu's character. But I did take some time to agree to work on the film, and after watching the original Telugu film, the notion of portraying that kind of romance became okay. The majority of my scenes are in the second half of the film, so I thought people did not pay attention to my character. But I was really happy when I saw that social media users were paying attention to my character.
Be it Sirai or the Malayalam film Maranamass (2025), your roles have been received well by the audience. How do you pick up projects?
AA: I have auditioned for every project I have worked on. As an actor, I am always waiting for a good project with a great cast, crew, and story. But hilariously, Youth is the first project where I didn't have to audition. But I think Ken is regretting this.
KK: No, no, I might joke about it, but make no mistake, she is a great actor.
AA: Even during narration, I thought there would be a small audition. But I will always be thankful for the trust Ken placed in me.
When the teaser for Youth gave audiences their first insight into the world, the reception was very positive. Isn't this the goal you wanted to achieve when you ventured into films?
KK: Many approached me and said, 'We are expecting your film so much.' I couldn't believe that my film is getting this kind of reception, because I have only played supporting roles so far. All the hype has been on the stars headlining the project. So I am very happy that Youth is getting this kind of attention. I have grown up listening to the cheers, the hooting, and the hollering reserved for stars like Vijay sir or Ajith sir. I chased that high when I performed in my school culturals, and even now, through my films, I am hoping to get that reception.