The opening shot of Ippadai Vellum has turned out well, says director of film

Veteran actor-producer Radhika Sarathkumar has appealed for constructive criticism on social media, while speaking at the press meet of Udhayanidhi Stalin’s forthcoming release Ippadai Vellum which is produced by Rajinikanth’s 2.0 makers Lyca Productions. “The misinformation spread by the press people on Twitter has been on the rise. Repeat a lie 100 times, and it becomes the truth. I would, sometimes, want to reply and address a few tweets, but I refrain from doing it. Now, speaking on the internet has become like shouting in the middle of Mount Road in front of hundreds of people. So, I’m avoiding it,” Radhika told reporters at the press meet of the film yesterday. [caption id=“attachment_4192791” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Udhayanidhi Stalin, Radhika Sarathkumar in Ippadai Vellum[/caption] “Cinema is the most disorganised industry. It’s an organised-disorganised sector. I’m a producer as well as an actor. I have incurred massive losses too. But, money is secondary. We can always earn it. It’s the amount of hard work we put in that matters. Every artist takes so much pain to make their film. Social media is a powerful estate. I would request everyone to represent things positively and be constructive in their criticism. Merely boasting a film’s collection as Rs. 200 crores or Rs. 300 crores would not take us anywhere. It would be only cheating ourselves if we continue to do so,” said Radhika who plays the role of a bus driver in the film. Radhika said director Gaurav Narayanan insisted that she should do this role. She also appreciated Udhaynidhi’s sincerity to correct his mistakes and improvise on set. “I always feel happy and proud when directors write a character keeping me in mind. Gaurav was very insistent on portraying women empowerment and wanted me to drive the bus. I have shared screen space with Udhay for the first time. I’ve seen him in his debut film Oru Kal Oru Kannadi, and now, he has become a seasoned actor. He was very very sincere and hard-working. I also observed that Udhay was very critical of his acting and rectified his mistakes immediately. He was always ready to revisit his scenes and introspect. It’s a very nice quality for an actor,” she said. Udhayanidhi was equally admiring Radhika’s effort in the film, where she has four-five crucial scenes. “Radhika ma’am has a brief but powerful character in the film. She plays my mother in the movie. We wanted some real shots of her driving the bus. She took training for a day and immediately shot for her portions the next day. Though her screen time is limited, she has a good role,” said Udhay. Recalling how he came on board, Udhay said, “After I watched Sigaram Thodu, I called Gaurav and wished him. He told me he would like to narrate a script to me and asked for a year’s time. Exactly after a year, he called me. Gaurav is a very expressive director. When he told the story to me, he broke a few glasses and table through the course of the narration. He completed the project within the stipulated period as promised. He was also involved with the production team and made sure that the budget didn’t shoot up.” Director Gaurav Narayanan revealed that an uncut scene featuring Daniel Balaji, best known for his work in films such as Pollathavan, Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu to name a few, will be one of the highlights. “My first film Thoonganagaram had a three-minute-long uncut shot and my second movie Sigaram Thodu had a four-minute-long uncut shot. Everyone appreciated both the scenes and I’m sure the five and a half minute uncut opening shot has come out promisingly well in Ippadai Vellum too, thanks to Daniel Balaji. I really enjoyed conceiving it,” said Gaurav. National award-winning editor Praveen KL assured that comedian Soori would be seen in a new dimension in the film. “We have all enjoyed the comedy portions of Udhayanidhi and Soori combo in their previous outings. But for the first time, Soori will leave you in tears with a performance-oriented role in the film. He has delivered a superb performance, and the scene has perfectly suited in the story.” Also starring Manjima Mohan as the lead heroine, Ippadai Vellum is slated to hit screens on 9 November alongside director Suseenthiran’s action thriller Nenjil Thunivirunthal and Nayanthara’s social drama Aramm.