Jeeva hopes award for Katrathu Tamil

By: Settu Shankar
Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Jeeva is one of the few stars in Tamil stars, who is committed to good cinema. Though his debut film was an average grosser, the actor has worked hard to find good stories and trusted the right directors to mould his role in his films. After 'Ram', Jeeva became one of the promising stars in the industry. On the eve of the release of his new film Katrathu Tamil (earlier titled as "Tamil M.A"), Jeeva met media persons yesterday at Devi Sri Devi Preview Theatre. The following are excerpts from his press brief:

What is the film about?

Katrathu Tamil is a realistic story of a postgraduate in Tamil who is looking for a job. But finally the society forces him to take a hasty decision. He becomes negligent and is insulted because of his Tamil degree. Even a Government college has refuses him. I'm playing the role of Prabhakar, a man who has devoted his life to uplift Tamil language. There are three stages in the characters life and I come in three different get-ups. I lost nearly 12 kilos for the film to get a lean look.

It is my eighth film in Tamil, and I would proudly say that it is the best that I have done so far. Let me assure you Katrathu Tamil will be a path breaking film and will be known as one of the classics in the 75 years history of Tamil films!

Have you completed the film?

Yes, the film was completed last month and was actually planned for release by the end of September. But due to some issues raised at the audio release of the film, it was delayed for a week. The film will be released on 5th October worldwide. Actor Karunas has bought the Tamilnadu rights of the film.

Tell us your experience with Katrathu Tamil…

It is a film with a realistic touch, biographical in presentation and different in narration. I worked for nearly a year on the film, which we shot in Maharashtra, Andhra, Kerala and Chennai. Nearly 450 cans of films were used for the film. I used to get up early in the morning to fix my long shaggy beard for the film, which was a torturous affair. I swear I will never wear beard for any other film in future.... or at least for few years till I forget this experience!

So far I have completed 7 films. This is my eighth film. But I have worked hard and put in all that I have learnt into my role for this film.

How about your experience with your new heroine?

Anjali, a new girl, is the heroine of the film. The actress has the image of the girl next door, which helped her portray the character naturally. Her character appears or is talked about throughout the film. Personally I don't know anything about this actress. I don"t get into such things. Generally, the actresses who act in my film are more like mere acquaintances. That may be a reason why I am not gossiped about in the media.

The songs of Katrathu Tamil have become very popular so soon. Yes…Yuvan's music is melodious, he has composed the songs straight from the heart. At present, he is the top most composer in Tamil Cinema. His work is amazing.

Would you say Katrathu Tamil will be a trendsetter? Will it win an award for you?

I definitely feel that it will change the way we look at Tamil cinema. The film will be an unforgettable one in the 75 years that Tamil cinema has come along. Actually we wanted to premiere it at the Cannes Film Festival but we could not complete the post production work. After seeing the film, many have hoped that I will get a National Award for the film. Surely the film is deserving of that. I hope the film will definitely win some award for Tamil Cinema!