Karthi and Rakul return with ‘Dev’
Debutant director Rajath Ravishankar says his story is not just another romantic tale
Mythily Ramachandran Debutant director Rajath Ravishankar’s romantic film is more a story about loving life and the people around you. “Today’s relationships are not merely defined by the three words, ‘I love you.’” said the Tamil director. “Gen X is looking for more than that, especially women being independent today.”
Ravishankar’s debut Tamil film, Dev, follows a young man with a positive outlook in life — one who believes in living life to the fullest. He meets Meghna — a self-made business woman and a complete antithesis to him. Dev follows their lives and their relationship.
Ravishankar intended to make a small film first and then probably work with a star. But the script appealed to Karthi who immediately agreed to work with him.
Karthi plays Dev. Rakul Preet Singh is once again paired opposite him as Meghna.
“I have sketched Dev’s character from my life experiences. He is a positive young man who enjoys travelling and to support his journeys he works as a photographer. Dev is an open book who lives life to the fullest,” added the former associate of Tamil directors R Kannan and Saravanan.
On the other hand, Meghna is careful about the steps she takes in life. She does not trust anyone and is careful before taking on any risk. “Meghna is a self-driven, work-oriented Karthi in ‘Dev’. woman, who has made her empire from scratch,” elaborated Singh.
“She is always thinking of money, fame and success. It is a strong and well-written role. She does not let go of her emotions easily. While playing Meghna, I also had to make the audience feel for her and understand why she is behaving that way,” said Singh. Director Rajath Ravishankar.
About working with Karthi, SIngh said, “With some people you click well. Karthi is an easy person and talented. He listens to the other person’s inputs and that helps to create a magic on the screen.”
Sharing screen space with actress Ramya Krishnan who plays Meghna’s mother, Singh called her one of the finest actors. “I had a great time with her. She is a supportive co-actor.”
Prakash Raj plays Dev’s father, a businessman. Actors Vignesh and Amritha play supporting characters, too.
Ravishankar, who grew up in Bengaluru, quit engineering to pursue film direction at Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute, Kolkata, where his film dreams were whetted further.
An avid traveller, Ravishankar once a month will randomly hop onto the fifth bus that leaves the bus station and travel to its final destination. From his travels and interactions were born 200 plus characters and fodder for future scripts. “People are happy to talk about themselves and their problems. I often found that many people give up on life,” said Ravishankar.
Dev releases in the UAE today.