WRITER VINCENT VADAKKAN MAKES MOVE TO CINEMA
Vincent Vadakkan is clearly on a high. The ad filmmaker from Bengaluru marks his debut in Malayalam cinema as a writer with Trance and spoke to tabloid about his new journey.
What is Trance about?
This story follows the journey of Viju Prasad, a motivational trainer who is transformed to become Pastor Joshua Carlton by an independent group of people in a Corporate set-up and spirituality is their business. However, Trance is also about sibling relationships and psychological elements, and not just the business of religion. It dwells also on the psychological turmoil the protagonist endures — the journey inside his mind.
What sparked this story?
I had seen some of my family members being part of religious groups. Not to forget troll videos of such groups. The format is the same. All you need is a hall and a crucifix for anyone to start an organisation like this. They claim this is Christianity, but Christianity is beyond all this noise. Post release of Trance, I have been asked if I am a non-believer. I am a believer in Christ but not into the middle men.
for a long time; tell us how it developed.
I quit my career with Oglivy in 2014 to write my story. My first draft was ready by the end of 2015. I narrated it first to Fahadh, who liked it and spoke to Anwar about the story. Anwar liked the story and the project was on. It’s a human intense subject and after several discussions and revised drafts, Trance was ready. Anwar has the ability to bring out the best in you. When I felt this was the best I could do, he pushed me to stretch myself further. Filming took two years.
Sketching so many characters must have been quite a challenge. Were there times when you got stuck?
Trance constitutes many characters that have been played by a team of accomplished actors. There was so much content in the film; the film could run for three to four hours. We had to edit to two hours plus. There were many instances when I got stuck with writer’s block but you do come out of it. In fact, when stuck with Trance, I wrote another story.
Is Trance inspired from anyone in real life?
Not really. One back story of a character was inspired from a real life incident. It is the character Vinayakan plays; he is one of the pastor’s followers. I read the story in a news report about how things are done in the name of faith.
How did Gautham Menon come on board?
We wanted somebody suave and stylish, a Malayali bred outside Kerala to play Solomon Davis, the brain behind the business venture. Anwar had watched Gautham Menon’s interview and he liked the way he conducted himself. He felt that Gautham was perfect to play the role. For me, it went beyond my dreams. I never thought Gautham Menon will play the villain in my first script.
How did Fahadh prepare for his character?
We gave Fahadh references to his character. He did not imitate them but came up with his own version of Joshu. It was an intense role for him- there was a lot of screaming loud in scenes, besides pausing on some words and stressing on other words. Fahadh got it bang on.
What were the shooting challenges?
Since Anwar Rasheed is the director and producer, we did not have a producer breathing down our necks. The biggest challenge came while filming with a crowd. They had to perform and not merely stand around. And, the performance had to be synchronised. We briefed them on it. For one scene, Anwar told them to think about the problems in their lives and perform. After he said ‘cut,’ they continued in that state, so immersed they were in their problems. Assistant directors rushed to wake them up from their stupor. They had gotten carried away, some were in tears. For me every shot was amazing — to see my story unfold on-screen. Each frame is a masterpiece. Towards the tail end, we shot with a crowd with smoke around and Fahadh in his climax attire. It was almost a heavenly feeling. I got goosebumps.