AM Rathnam, producer
quarrels with his sister and has a strict father. All these aspects are very relatable to family audiences, then and now. Plus, all the actors in the lm — Vijay, Trisha and Prakash Raj — are still very relevant today.
Q:
was – and is still – a success because it treats its protagonist not as a hero but as a normal boy. We are very happy that its re-release is doing well in cinema halls and that audiences are lapping it up. There is a general craze for part-2 films now;
and were hits. We are planning a currently and similarly, I will try taking steps to create
Take us back to 2004, and tell us how you managed to pitch the idea of
Ghilli to Vijay and producer AM Rathnam...
I had nished Dhool,
starring Vikram, and my assistants and I just wanted to go watch a lm. Telugu lm Okkadu had released, and we watched it in Midland Cinemas. It was gripping from the
rst scene, but I became very anxious as the lm proceeded. I had a story idea based on a kabaddi player, another storyline on a romance between a guy who hid his girl in a lighthouse, and another road lm idea. Okaddu had all these
Dharani:
three elements in them. We immediately met producer AM Rathnam, requested him to get its remake rights and make it in Tamil with Vijay.
Q:Ghilli remains one of Vijay’s most rewatchable lms. How did his presence add to the storyline you had in mind?
Vijay had till then not attempted so much humour in his
lms. In Ghilli, we were determined to get that sense of humour out. I would usually act and showcase what I wanted, and Vijay would immediately deliver that eortlessly in front of the camera; he was almost like an AI model replicating exactly what we had in mind. His comedy timing was excellent, and all the family sequences involving him, Ashish Vidyarthi, Janaki Sabesh and Jennifer were a hoot.
Dharani:
Q:You have a long-standing equation with music composer Vidyasagar, whose tunes in Ghilli have audiences dancing in theatres even today...
During every composing session, we have a thagaraaru
(argument), but it was always an anbaana thagaraaru (friendly argument). He insisted on having melody tunes, and I used to tell him, in a friendly way, to give those tracks to directors like Radhamohan and Viji (smiles). For this lm’s template and speed, I wanted slightly fast-paced numbers, and he delivered in a big way.
Dharani:
Q:Finally, can we look forward to a Ghilli 2 sometime?
Ghilli getting a re-release now is the second part (laughs). I don’t know if we would have got such a reception even if we made a Ghilli 2!