Rajiv Menon on making Sarvam Thaala Mayam and exploring casteism in Carnatic music scene

Almost two decades after his last directorial project, cinematographer-filmmaker Rajiv Menon made a strong comeback with GV Prakash Kumar-starrer Sarvam Thaala Mayam , a musical drama which explores casteism in the Carnatic music scene, and the guru-shishya tradition. The film is centered on the son of a Dalit mridangam maker and how his dream to play the mridangam in a popular Chennai music festival is met with stiff opposition from most people. In an interaction, Menon opens up on what inspired him to make the film, his passion for music and why he took such a long break from direction.

It was while working on a documentary on mridangam exponent Umayalpuram Sivaraman, when Menon got inspired to make a film on a particular incident from his experience. “Around three or four years ago, I was approached to make a documentary on Umayalpuram K Sivaraman, the mridangam player. Once, during a performance in Thanjavur, I found a man named Johnson hanging around, and later discovered he makes and repairs mridangams. When I started talking to him, he told me that they test and make the instruments but never play them, and that he had sent his son to Umayalpuram to learn. His words stayed with me for long. I went on to complete the documentary but couldn’t really screen it anywhere. This is when I asked myself if I could turn the story of Johnson and his desire to see his son play the mridangam into a story. That’s when I started writing.”

Menon bounced the idea off AR Rahman and the latter even started scoring the music for the project. Unable to find a producer even after spending close to year and a half on production, Menon decided to produce the film on his own with his wife, Latha Menon. When he started writing, he didn’t want to focus much on the caste angle in the story. “I saw this as a story of an underdog and his foray into the world of Carnatic music. The film does question caste and talks about how talent is also being discriminated against. But it’s also about learning and performing. It’s the journey of a young man and how he brings out his talent with the help of his guru.”

It’s not every day that we get to see musicals being made, and Menon said making a film revolving around Carnatic music came with its own set of challenges. “As much as I wanted to talk about Carnatic music and its traditions, I wanted the music to be universal and accessible. It’s always a challenge to get the younger audiences to like Carnatic music. That’s why we wanted all the musical scenes in the film to be authentic. Prakash is a musician and he can play drums, but he learnt to play the mridangam for the film. I knew Nedumudi Venu could actually play the mridangam in real life, and he stunned all of us during the jamming sessions. We also cast professional Carnatic musicians because actors who play musicians without actually understanding music can never look convincing. So, we roped in real life musicians to play minor roles, but it really worked in the larger scheme of things.”

On his passion for music and how his musical sensibilities influenced his filmmaking, Menon said: “My mother practises music. From an early age, I have been fortunate to listen to live concerts. When you listen to music being performed live, it really brings out the full scope of artists. There’ll always be a connection to music in my films.”

On a concluding note, Menon said he made Sarvam Thaala Mayam as he believed it will give young people hope. “It is a film that is meant to bring people together. If the film can spark creative flair in young people and give them the confidence to pursue their passion, it serves its purpose.”