It is interesting how cinema acts as a unifying medium for strong and distinct voices. While there can be no doubt that filmmaker Pa Ranjith is an important torchbearer of today’s Tamil cinema, it is wonderful how Lokesh Kanagaraj is another important torchbearer despite coming from a completely different school of filmmaking. What really marries their thoughts together is their endeavour to reach the maximum audience. 

Filmmaker Pa Ranjith’s impact on cinema continues to be documented for all the right reasons. One of the offshoots of his cinematic journey is the Koogai library that frequently conducts conversations with important filmmakers, and this time around, it was Lokesh. Talking to a packed audience, the Leo director candidly opened up on multiple aspects of his craft, and gave patient answers to almost 40-50 questions from a robust crowd. 

Here are some of the aspects that Lokesh Kanagaraj covered in the almost 90-minute ‘Masterclass’ video out on Neelam Social. 

ALSO READ: Rajinikanth reveals TJ Gnanavel’s response to his request for a more commercial Vettaiyan: ‘Don’t expect it to be like Nelson, Lokesh Kanagaraj films’

Honestly, there are no guidelines in cinema. Look at any filmmaker’s filmography, and there will be both hits and misses, but there will be something they are really good at. Take, for instance, Gautham Vasudev Menon’s films. Yes, he has done a lot of action films, but it was Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya that still resonates with us, right? That is his core. Right from Maanagaram, my films have interlinked scenes. That is my strength, I guess.

Earlier, many filmmakers never even attended the shoot while filming action sequences. They just let the stunt directors hold the wheel. Fighters in the first fight used to be repeated multiple times. But with filmmaking becoming more sincere, I had to think of all these aspects too. I respect fighters a lot, and I have seen how they call their families before executing a stunt sequence, because they understand the risks involved. When they are putting so much hard work, I should do it too, right?

Plus, I believe my action sequences should cater to basic human emotions. One fight that changed my life is the sequence from Oomai Vizhigal where Arun Pandian pays a roadside musician to continue playing music while he fights a group of people. 

Honestly, most stars have approached me to do a film for them because they like my style of writing and filmmaking. And it is not possible to say No to a lot of opportunities that come through these stars. In fact, I was supposed to do a film with Vijay sir right after Maanagaram, but I had to pass it on because I didn’t have the right script. But when it came again during Kaithi, I didn’t want to miss it again. 

I’ve worked with almost 20 big stars in 6 films, and they come prepared for the kind of films I make. They know what is expected. 

I haven’t yet been able to take the action film I wanted to. Thanks to Kaithi, I learnt how the structure works, the issues that would crop up, and the limitations that come in a star vehicle. 

Since I love my stunts to adhere to the law of physics, the violence seems more brutal and raw. I want to do a Kill Bill-like film with a woman in the lead. But we can’t release such a film in Indian theatres, not even on OTT. 

The toughest multi-starrer I have done so far is Maanagaram. Sundeep was busy, and so were Charle sir and Munishkanth sir. So we had to work around the dates a lot. When it comes to having huge stars in the film, it becomes easy because they are all professionals who understand the value of the time of other stars. Even the ‘sudden’ surgery of Rajini sir was something we knew already. That is why we wrapped up the shoot before his surgery. He is set to join Coolie’s sets on October 16. 

ALSO READ: Leo and beyond, Lokesh Kanagaraj isn’t just another mass movie director: Why his worlds appear more alluring than his peers

My mantra is very simple. I discuss the story with my ADs, and if they are excited, it becomes my first motivation. There are many stories that never made it past this round of scrutiny. Also, I have not shot any film for over six months. I want to complete the film before my excitement wanes. The same is planned with Coolie too. 

Plus, during every narration, the ADs ask a lot of questions, and convincing them is my practice session to convince those who are critical of my film. Anyone can suggest anything to me, and if they are on point, I have no qualms accepting them. 

Leo started as a psychological thriller with Vijay sir as the only constant in the film. It was one of my first films without a strong antagonist because everything was mounted on Vijay sir. 

Then, in the 20 minutes flashback, thanks to the commercial requirements of having a star like Vijay in the driver’s seat, I had to include a song, an intro fight, establish the players, and return to today’s timeline. Left to me, I wanted to make a Red Wedding-kind of an episode, where things randomly happen, but I had to include certain commercial elements. Even with the narabali (human sacrifice) flashback, we only took the core, and developed a story around it. But, even that felt too superstitious and archaic by many. 

All I needed was time to chisel it further. It is also important to understand that not every attempt by a filmmaker would reach the audience without filters being placed along the way. 

I’m someone who still prefers watching films in 2D instead of 3D. Then there was a scene in Vikram that was shot in an iPhone, but we had to scrap it because Philomin (Editor) pointed out a technical difficulty. So, it is not yet feasible to shoot entire films, especially with big stars, on mobile phones. Plus, there is a clear system in place where producers trust the hard drive, and its backup. So, it is tough to play around with it. 

Also, I might not know what lens to put in every scene, but it is important that I have a strong technical team who are constantly updated, and are well-informed of the same.  

This is not a new debate in Tamil cinema. I wish people could see a film just as a film. If people say a type of films are destroying the audience, then only one type of films would be released, and not everyone would watch it in the theatre. 

Also, more importantly, my films are censored by a responsible board that decides what should be shown to what kind of audience. Then, after that, the audience decides which film would be heralded and not. 

Through Master, Kaithi, and Vikram, I used some of the biggest commercial draws to talk against drug abuse. But again, if I’m watching Narcos, I want to use the filmmaking aspects of it, and I don’t want to use drugs in my own life. That choice is the responsibility of the audience. Why are you so weak to be influenced by cinema? Filmmakers don’t have to take all the blame. 

When I started out, we had the Naalaiya Iyakkunar show as a huge platform. It opened a lot of gates, and the works of Karthik Subbaraj (Pizza), Nalan Kumarasamy (Soodhu Kavvum) were an eye-opener. But after a point, we started overdoing short films. Now, it is tough to break through the clutter of thousands of such films. 

Probably, now it is the time where pitch decks are welcomed. Now, producers might want to see how you would shoot your scenes in a minimal budget. They want to see that aspect of your skills. As a producer myself, even I’d be tired of seeing short films. There is a marked change, yes. 

Honestly, I wanted to finish Vikram on a high. Even while making the film, I was thinking of the concepts of universe, cross over, etc… 

There is a chance to make Kaithi 2, Vikram 2, and a standalone film for Rolex. My next film will be the peak LCU film where all my characters will come together.  

Also, this is a concept that has been alive in Hollywood for over 70 years. It is relatively very new here. There is LCU, there is Prashant Varma Cinematic Universe, and then there is the Cop universe. But these are all new. 

Let’s just talk about my cinematic universe. I have made those films for four different production houses. Imagine the number of NOCs I have to get for using these characters, theme music etc… It is far from easy because each stakeholder is different. This is still in a trial and error stage, and complicating things by having crossovers from other films might just make it less of a trial, and more of an error. 

My upcoming fourth film will be the base of this universe, a structure of sorts. This is all new, but we’ll get there.