One of the key characters in the recently released film, starring Suriya and director RJ Balaji himself, is a deity named Karuppasamy. The story follows the titular God (Suriya) who embarks on a journey to Earth to save those suffering from injustice here. Now, who is Karuppasamy? Recently, Karuppu production designer Arun Venjaramoodu talked about the mythology behind the fantasy film with social commentary.
Speaking to Club FM Kerala, Arun said, "Karuppasamy is actually a God from Kerala. He is the master of the holy 18 steps at Sabarimala who guards Lord Ayyappa."
Arun Venjaramoodu also revealed that the makers of the film constructed the Karuppasamy statue specifically for the Suriya starrer. He said that they made changes to how the deity is believed to have looked according to traditions and custom-designed the statue for Karuppu.
"We had it made with sculptors who work at temples in Palakkad. It was constructed with a single stone of three feet tall, and the process took around 25 days," Arun revealed.
He added that the authorities of a temple were impressed by the statue used in the film and acquired it for use as an idol at their place of worship. "They liked the statue and those who acquired it are part of the familial temple with connections to the Karuppu team," the production designer revealed.
Arun has received much appreciation for his work in the film, in addition to composer Sai Abhyankkar, cinematographer GK Vishnu, and the visual effects team, led by Logaraj C. Recently, the film's director-actor RJ Balaji told Sudhir Srinivasan that Arun is "one of the best production designers in South India," although people outside of the film industry are not too familiar with him.
