Director Mari Selvaraj has reflected on his collaboration with Dhanush in Karnan and the trust that shaped the film during a recent conversation with Sudhir Srinivasan.
Mari said that despite Dhanush being a major star and mass hero with a huge fan following, he fully surrendered himself to the rooted world of Karnan. “I could place him there, make him serve, and put him through many things. He did it all with complete belief in me,” he said.
Recalling the challenges of shooting during the pandemic, Mari spoke about working under severe restrictions, with elderly actors on set and several sequences being reshuffled due to COVID. While many portions were shot separately in different locations, including Chennai and Tirunelveli, Mari said the film eventually came together despite the lack of direct interactions in certain scenes.
He explained, "What I admired most about Dhanush sir was his understanding. There were many problems during the shoot. When the film was released, I realised that I had not shown him many portions clearly while making it. The younger sister track and several emotional moments were not visible to him in isolation because we kept rearranging scenes due to COVID. We shot walking sequences separately with him, and I went to Tirunelveli to shoot with the villagers. There were no direct interactions in some places, yet we completed the film."
He added that Dhanush may have initially felt he was an extremely demanding director, but the actor later acknowledged the effort that went into the film. After watching Karnan in the US, Dhanush called him and expressed his gratitude. “He said he finally understood how much work had gone into the film and told me that I had given him a film he never expected in his career. He said no amount of thanks would be enough,” Mari recalled.
Karnan got its theatrical release in April 2021 and emerged as a success, both critically and commercially. It is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Bankrolled by Kalaipuli S Thanu's V Creations, the filmalso stars Lal, Rajisha Vijayan, Natty, and Yogi Babu in prominent roles. Dhanush and Mari Selvaraj are now working on another project, tentatively titled D56.