He speaks about the elements added in the Malayalam remake of ‘Andhadhun’ and the process of making the remake
Cinematographer Ravi K Chandran always wanted to direct films. However, his eye for good visuals and the influence of his elder brother, the late cinematographer K Ramachandran Babu changed the course of his career and inspired him to work with some of the biggest filmmakers in the country.
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A few years back he got a chance to direct a Tamil film ie, but describes it as a ‘bitter experience’. Frustrated Ravi went back to cinematography. during that time he saw Andhadhun And it affected him. While talking to its director Sriram Raghavan, he learned that the film was initially planned with a South Indian actor, who could not give dates for the project, had also found a location in Kochi. With a producer, Ravi made a bid to acquire the remake rights, which took some time to come by and started directing it. Result delusional, releasing this week on Amazon Prime Video. He wants to continue directing. “There are so many stories that I want to tell. These are new platforms for people to show these films.” Excerpts from a chat:
This (pandemic) is an important way to make your first film…
(laughs) Movies are always eventful. No matter how experienced you are, things can go wrong. The filmmaking process is impossible to predict.
How did you get Prithviraj in the project?
When we met for another project, Andhadhun came into the conversation; Prithvi mentioned that he wanted the film rights. We decided to go ahead and get the screenplay written by Sarath Balan. Then, the pandemic happened and Prithvi was shooting abroad aadujeevitham. we almost forgot about the movie (laughs). When things opened up at the end of 2020, we started filming. It was an ideal film to make during a pandemic as it was not crowded and only a few people were involved on the sets.
Are you sticking to the original or did you make changes to the script?
We had to make changes; Prithvi’s look and body language are different from Ayushmann’s. Tabu played an older character in the original, while Mamta is much younger in this version.
The original had a softer palette, so we wanted to introduce some color to it. I am also watching a lot of Malayalam movies and I have found that many people limit themselves to murder mystery and dark themes. i wanted delusional There are a lot of colors, like in the Pedro Almodovar movies.
the cinematography Andhadhun KU Mohanan while you are handling the camera in the Malayalam version. Did you feel restricted because of the visuals in the original?
When Aamir made Ghajini, he used the villain and heroine (Asin) from the original. We said, with sync sound, Asin will not be able to deliver Hindi dialogues, she said we will dub. He made the film because he liked certain things in the film. Why change things up too much? It’s like buying a television because you like it so much and then adding extra speakers to it. If you liked it at first, leave it as it is.
That said, some locations lend themselves to the scene. Every place is different, houses and structures are different. You use the shot to tell the story, not the copy as it is in the original. Use what is necessary for the character to tell the story.
Was it difficult to wear two hats at once; of director and cinematographer?
The first two days were tough. In fact, I called another DOP to shoot it. But Prithvi told me that I had not done any Malayalam film in the last 20 years and he always wanted to work with me as a cinematographer. I told him that doing both would mean the film would take longer to complete, and he agreed and gave more dates.
We were able to shoot fast. The Kerala crew was superb; Initially, I thought it would be difficult for me as I was used to Mumbai’s style of working. The people were so nice that we were premature.
You have worked with some of the best directors of our times. Did some of them impress you?
You learn something from every film. You have noticed many things. For example, Sanjay Leela Bhansali is very particular about junior cast being put behind an actor, and choreographing a scene before shooting. Mani Ratnam has a completely different approach; He says if you have a good team, then half the job is done and all you have to worry about is how you narrate the story as a director.
As a cinematographer, I always wanted to tell a story, my work is based on that. I have always wanted to tell it from the director’s point of view. I am no ‘fashionable cinematographer’. That’s how I’m trained. Look at my movies, none of them look the same. is hot Youth And Black Together, Kannathil Muthamittali And heart wants Together.
Every film is completely different because I wanted to tell the story with the director. For one of my next films, I am doing something different. This will be a change for all. Otherwise it will get boring, it will just feel like another regular job. You need to excite yourself, put yourself in a place otherwise you will not venture to do anything new.
That’s what this movie is about for me. Earlier I used to go on sets as a cameraman, set the lights and do my job, while the poor director was struggling to make this thing (film). now, during delusional, I had 200 people looking at me asking “What’s your move?” And I’m thinking, “What do I tell the actors?”
Your take on Malayalam cinema, which is now at a great place…
Malayalam films have become the Iranian films of India. Whatever we do, people elsewhere get excited. It seems people in Mumbai have watched every Malayalam movie available on the OTT platform!
What other projects do you have in the pipeline?
are a couple; Let’s see how it turns out. There are some great Malayalam cinematographers at the moment; It’s scary to step into their shoes.
Why are you saying this?
They are doing extraordinary work. People like Girish Gangadharan, Shayju Khalid and Shanu John Varughi….
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