Promotion is important for people to go watch a film: Arulnithi

Ever since he made his debut in 2010, with Pandiraj’s Vamsam, Arulnithi has earned a name for himself as an actor who chooses interesting scripts. He has wrapped up debutant director Mu Maran’s crime thriller Iravukku Aayiram Kangal and is currently working on Karu Palaniappan’s Pugazhendi Enum Naan, a political satire. The actor is known to choose one script at a time, and he says that it was during the final days of Brindavanam’s shoot, when he has started listening to scripts for his next film, that he heard about Iravukku Aayiram Kangal, through Aravind, an executive producer.Aravind had been repeatedly calling him, asking him to listen to this story, and Arulnidhi says such instances usually make him apprehensive. “Because, if the script is that good, they would have been able to attract some other actor, right?” he asks and laughs.
But since Aravind was relentless, he met with director Maran and heard the script, and liked it very much. It was how unpredictable the twists were that made him warm up to it, he informs. “I listen to a script from the point of view of the audience. I also have four or five friends with me during the narration as I believe it’s better if we get the opinion our well-wishers right before beginning a film rather than calling them to get feedback after the film is done. Everyone who was with me during the narration liked the script,” he says.
He also listened to the script a second time, going out on a drive with the director. “This time, too, I found it interesting even though I knew what the twists will be,” he adds.
Quiz him if he felt any pressure deciding on this film, especially after his previous film, Brindavanam, failed at the box office and he replies, “Actually, Brindavanam was a good film. I don’t think I will get such a role another time.” He reveals that he counts it as a favourite among the films that he has done so far. "I'm sure that five years down the line, if someone were to look at my filmography, they would place it in the list of good films that I’ve worked on,” he feels. He also adds that both in terms of performance and in giving him an opportunity to work with an acclaimed filmmaker like Radha Mohan, the film did help his career.
So, what does he think went wrong? “I really don’t know,” he says, and gets philosophical, “When you have tasted success, you need not talk about the reasons, but when you fail, you are expected to search for reasons.” He then adds that perhaps the time of its release did not work out. He also believes that people will go and watch a film if its content is good and if it is promoted right. “People need to know that a film is hitting screen that Friday. So, if you get the promotion part right, people will go watch it,” he says.
And this is why he is confident about Iravukku Aayiram Kangal. The film's promotions, he says, are creating a buzz, and the crew has done a good job. “For a film to work, the director, cinematographer, music director and editor should sync well, and that has happened here. Along with Maran, Sam CS (music director), Aravinnd Singh (cinematographer) and San Lokesh (editor) have done a very good job,” he explains.
The story, he informs, happens during one night, and his character is that of a call taxi driver. But he refuses to term himself as the film’s lead and Ajmal, who plays a crucial role, as the antagonist. “Actually, there is no hero or villain. Every actor plays a character and every character in the film has equal importance and scope. Everyone has a problem, but I cannot reveal more about the story because that will reveal its plot and the suspense would then be broken,” he says. But he feels that the film will earn Ajmal as good a name as Ko did.
Ask him if he was apprehensive about talking up Pugazhendi Enum Naan, given his lineage, and pat comes the reply, “ The only criterion when I choose my films is this: ‘Do I like the script’. I have taken up all my films so far — be it Demonte Colony or Mouna Guru or Aarathu Sinam or Oru Kanniyum Moonu Kalavanigalum — on this principle, and even with this film, I liked the script, and decided to do it. That’s all there is to it.” His family members, he adds, are OK with his decision. “They see films and real life differently. They all said that they are confident that I’d have chosen a good script,” he says.
The actor perks up when you ask him about the recent viral video that showed his son, Magizhan, playing cricket with his grandfather, Kalaignar Karunanidhi. “There is no greater joy than fatherhood. Magizhan is one-and-a-half years old now. I had a break from shoot for a few days and spent most of my time with him. But on shoot days, I can see him only if I return home before 7pm, because he usually plays for an hour before going to sleep. And on alternate days, he goes to thatha’s house in the evening to play,” he shares. As for Kalaignar, he says, “Thatha is improving well.”