Kamal Haasan teamed up with director Gautham Vasudev Menon for the cop drama Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu. Kamal wowed the audience with his acting prowess in this project and received an overwhelming response as DCP Raghavan that ensured he bagged the State Award for Best Actor too. It has completed 15 years of its release today. Here’s a look at five interesting facts from the cop drama.
Raghavan
The neo-noir action thriller also starred Jyothika, Kamalinee Mukherjee, Prakash Raj, Daniel Balaji, and Salim Baig in pivotal roles. The film revolves around Raghavan who is looking out for a serial killer who killed his friend’s daughter. As the culprit moves from one city to another, Raghavan is forced to hunt him down in New York. Kamal’s stylish way of investigation is well enjoyed by the audience, and it added power to the cop drama.
Financial troubles
Producer Kaja Mohideen ran into financial troubles and attempted suicide, soon after Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu went on floors. Then, Kamal wanted to quite the project but Gautham convinced him to stay on. V. Ravichandran of Oscar films then stepped in the project. In order not to waste dates, GVM personally funded a schedule in Mumbai featuring Kamal and Jyothika out of his own packet.
Enjoyable flashback
Despite being a crime thriller, the director takes fans back for an enjoyable flashback about Raghavan’s married life. These romantic scenes of Haasan and Kamalinee added more life to the narrative. Actress Rohini and Andrea Jeremiah dubbed for the voices of female leads Jyothika and Mukherjee, respectively.
New York
The classic sunrise in New York had been captured by Ravi Varman for the song Manjal Veyil Maalayile that provided visual extravaganza to the audience. Menon’s direction along with Ravi Varman’s innovative lensing pattern had scaled the film’s technical excellence. GVM had also planned to shoot more scenes in New York, including a Hollywood-style car chase sequence, but the change of producer delayed the schedule and increased costs.
Introduction scenes
Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu was one of the first Indian films to be made using the super 35 camera. It’s a film format that uses the same film stock as standard 35 mm film, but puts a larger image frame on that stock. The opening sequence of the movie, where Kamal fight with goons, was shot in the actor’s own house in Chennai.
