From
Pallavi
Anu
Pallavi
in
Kannada
in
(1983)
to
Raavan
in
Hindi
(2010),
it
has
indeed
been
a
very
long
and
fruitful
journey
for
Mani
Ratnam.
Most
cineastes
regard
him
as
one
of
the
most
significant
voices
of
commercial
Indian
cinema.
Straddling
the
world
of
high
aesthetics,
mass-orientation
and
some
say,
simplistic
politics,
Mani
has
created
a
spiral
of
work
whose
impact
resonates
across
the
face
of
Indian
cinema
no
matter
what
the
spoken
language
of
his
characters
-
Kannada,
Tamil
or
Hindi.
Remarkably
soft
spoken
and
possessing
a
wicked
sense
of
humour,
Mani
Ratnam
who
turned
54
on
June
2,
speaks
to
this
correspondent.
It's
been
a
long
tough
journey
for
you.
Would
you
say
Raavan
was
your
hardest
film
to
make?
Ah
let
me
think,
yes,
you
could
be
right,
but
that
is
the
exact
way
I
felt
about
the
last
film
and
the
one
before
that.
When
i
did
my
first
film
i
said
to
myself
just
a
film
or
two
you
will
know
enough
about
filming
and
then
it
it
would
be
a
piece
of
cake.
And
I
believed
it.
And
I
love
cakes.
But
No.
it
is
still
as
tough.
Gets
worse
by
the
film.
The
rugged
jungles
and
the
severe
climate
-
how
integral
were
they
to
the
plot?
Could
the
hardships
faced
by
the
cast
and
crew
have
been
diminished
if
you
had
shot
in
less
severe
locations?
As
a
story
teller,
you
try
to
use
every
tool
at
your
disposal
to
tell
the
story
better,
to
stage
the
scenes
effectively.
The
terrain
and
the
climate
is
a
very
huge
tool.
They
are
the
stage
on
which
the
drama
is
mounted.
They
help
you
to
transport
the
viewer
close
to
the
character,
to
the
action.
And
gives
the
actor
a
pre-set
stage
on
which
he
or
she
can
perform.
So
the
location
and
the
climate
is
not
a
hindrance,
we
seek
it.
We
planned
Raavan
in
the
monsoons,
so
that
we
could
benefit
from
the
helping
hands
of
nature.
A
film
by
Mani
Ratnam
is
considered
a
cinematic
event.
How
would
regard
your
journey
from
your
early
Tamil
films
to
Dil
Se
in
Hindi,
Yuva
and
now
Raavan?
Tough
and
hard
journey.
The
terrains
we
shoot
in
are
nothing
compared
to
this
path.
It
just
doesn't
get
easy.
The
struggle
has
increased
because
you
don't
have
excuses
to
fall
back
on.
You
can't
claim
it
is
first
film
and
therefore
errors
and
omissions
are
expected.
You
can"t
hide
behind
your
own
cliches
that
you
have
exhausted
by
now.
And
world
cinema
is
growing
at
such
a
clip
that
you"ve
got
to
keep
changing
to
stay
within
the
reasonable
distance.
It
is
not
so
much
the
film
or
the
logistics
but
your
own
creativity
you
battle
against.
You
suddenly
suffered
a
health
scare
during
the
shooting.
How
did
that
experience
change
your
perception
of
art
and
life?
Ha!
The
scares
are
just
reminders
to
stay
fit
and
healthy.
Once
this
ten-headed
Raavan
is
out
of
my
system
I
shall
be
back
on
course
and
fitness.
To
answer
the
second
part
of
your
question
-
How
does
it
affect
art
and
life?
Well
it
is
romantic
idea
to
think
that
when
you
go
into
an
ICU
and
come
out
come
out
with
a
changed
perspective
on
everything.
Not
true.
Though
what
it
did
for
me
with
this
film
was
it
made
me
get
Raavan
meaner
and
fitter.
What
I
did
not
do
to
myself
I
did
to
my
script.
Cut
the
flab
and
got
it
leaner.
Raavan
was
shot
in
two
languages
simultaneously.
Did
that
mean
double
the
toil?
Yes,
I
am
afraid.
What
we
got
right
in
the
first
place,
we
had
to
battle
all
over
again
to
get
it
right
again,
and
if
that
by
chance
became
better,
we
had
to
re
make
the
first
one
again.
When
we
made
mistakes
we
made
them
twice.
We
will
never
forget
the
mistakes
we
made
in
this
shoot
because
we
already
paid
for
it.
To
be
honest
it
was
a
bit
more
than
double
toil.
More
like
2.5.
Considering
the
difficulties
you
faced
in
making
Raavan
would
you
say
shooting
a
film
in
a
studio
is
far
more
manageable,
if
less
authentic?
When
I
watch
a
film,
I
have
never
been
bothered
about
how
difficult
it
must
have
been
for
the
maker
to
put
it
together.
That
is
the
problem
of
the
director.
As
a
viewer
we
just
see
if
the
film
connects.
Finally
that
is
the
only
thing
counts.
And
makes
the
distributor
count.
So
when
you
make
the
movie
-
where
you
do,
does
not
matter,
as
long
as
you
are
able
to
make
the
connection.
Where
you
shoot
is
your
personal
call.
Earlier
people
spoke
about
your
comfortable
equation
with
Madhavan.
Now
do
you
share
a
similar
comfort
level
with
Abhishek
Bachchan?
Comfort
is
a
bad
word
during
shooting.
If
you
become
comfortable
you
tend
to
become
complacent.
The
struggle
phase
is
much
better,
because
then,
there
is
this
stress
and
effort
to
reach
for
more.
With
AB
I
could
do
a
few
films
only
because
we
were
tackling
very
different
characters
each
time.
Lalan
was
a
far
cry
from
Gurukanth
and
Beera
now
is
way
away
from
Gurukanth
Desai.
Which
means
the
actor
and
I
are
back
to
square
one.
Which
is
-
not
having
a
clue
as
to
how
to
bring
Beera
alive
on
screen?
Square
one
is
a
good
place
at
the
start
of
the
shoot.
And
Aishwarya?
She
did
her
first
film
Irruvar
with
you?
Now
Raavan.
How
far
has
she
emerged
as
an
actress?
Ash
was
good
right
from
Irruvar.
She
was
doing
in
a
language
she
did
not
know,
was
doing
two
different
characters
and
she
was
doing
a
film
that
was
being
shot
in
lengthy
-
and
slightly
complicated
style.
it
did
not
have
any
comfort
of
a
launch
film.
She
was
pushed
into
the
water.
Like
we
have
done
with
her
several
times
in
Raavan.
And
she
had
to
shout
in
Tamil
for
help.
Ash
just
swam.
In
Raavan,
Ragini
is
the
key.
She
is
one
who
drives
the
film.
She
is
the
one
who
treads
the
path
that
is
unwritten.
Beera
(abhishek)
and
Dev
(Vikram)
are
roles
that
are
set
-
and
the
actors
stand
tall
in
them.
Ash
had
to
make
Ragini
her
own.
She
had
to
find
a
Pitch,
a
Sur
that
would
make
you
connect
with
her
and
the
film.
She
really
carries
the
audience
perspective
in
the
story
telling.
Please
describe
some
of
the
most
memorable
and
frightening
experiences
of
shooting
Raavan.
Memorable
moments
are
the
struggle
each
day,
the
torture
that
I
put
the
entire
crew
into.
If
I
was
going
to
battle
why
make
the
rest
comfortable?
Let
them
share
a
bit
of
my
anxiety.
The
frightening
ones
are
answering
your
unending
questions.
How
do
you
keep
on
grilling,
Subhash?
What
next?
Are
you
doing
another
Hindi
film,
this
time
with
Ranbir
Kapoor?
What
next?
Honestly,
don't
know.
At
the
beginning
of
Raavan
I
thought
that
I
would
retire
after
this
film
and
settle
in
Kodaikanal
and
play
golf
every
day.
At
the
end
of
the
film
I
am
ready
to
start
my
next
one
soon.
So
let"s
see.
I
should
become
very
good
in
either
golf
or
film-making.
Can"t
struggle
with
both.
That"s
for
sure.