Evano Oruvan - Madhavan

I have been promoting Dombivali Fast (Marathi) and Evano Oruvan, remake of Dombivali fast in my columns.

Its a good movie and I dont want anyone to miss this film be it in Marathi or in Tamizh.

For tamizh viewers, the interesting point to note is, the dialogues of Tamizh version EvanO Oruvan is written by none other than Actor Madhavan himself.

Why was Madhavan keen on ‘Evano Oruvan?’ Read on.

A defining moment in Madhavan’s life was when he heard of a movie called ‘Dombivli Fast.’ Or perhaps when on a whim he took a flight to Mumbai to see the movie. Or perhaps it was when he was watching it, he decided that he wanted to act in its Tamil remake, ‘Evano Oruvan.’ Now the wait is on for another defining moment — the release of the movie, which, he hopes, will prove to be another landmark in his career. “I have never been so mesmerised by a film like I was after seeing ‘Dombivli Fast.’ I lost all bearing, all composure. I was so impressed that I caught hold of the movie’s director, Nishikant, and told him that I wanted to do the Tamil remake at any cost,” he says.

The performance of Sandeep Kulkarni in the lead role left him unnerved. “I was driven to tears by his performance. Even though I desperately wanted to do the movie, I lost my confidence.”
‘Evano Oruvan,’ says Madhavan, is the story of a normal, middle-class man Sridhar Vasudevan, who leads a very mundane lifestyle. It shows what happens when he sees all the wrongs around him and starts reacting to them.

Madhavan says that the role of Sridhar Vasudevan proved as much a challenge as the role of the ruffian Inbasekhar in ‘Aayutha Ezhuthu,’ which he thinks was one of the toughest in his career. “In most other movies I have done, the roles required me to have a screen presence. They demanded that I be perceived as a hero. But in ‘Evano Oruvan,’ I had to blend in with the junior artistes. I had to look like a common man… which was very tough.”

Though the original was in Marathi, Madhavan says the remake is as Tamil as can be.
He is “very proud” of writing the dialogue for ‘Evano Oruvan,’ his first attempt in Tamil. “I had earlier written the dialogue for ‘Ramji Londonwale’ in Hindi [the remake of ‘Nala Damayanthi’], but this time round it was very tough. Getting the local flavour right was a major challenge. Also, he had director Seeman, who is also playing a role in the movie, providing “total, hardcore support.”

Madhavan bemoans the lack of good and well-researched scripts in Tamil. Even the Hindi industry is coming out with interesting scripts like ‘Lage Raho Munnabhai’ and ‘Rang De Basanti,’ but they are not available here,” he says.Permanent fixture

He has been a permanent fixture in all of Mani Ratnam’s films, but now he seems to be enlarging this group to include Seeman and Nishikant too. “Mani Sir is a maverick filmmaker and has very strong likes and dislikes. You will never be criticised for your role in a Mani Ratnam movie because he will make sure he gets what he wants from you as an actor.”

Seeman is a professional and a passionate filmmaker, says Madhavan. “It is a joy to work in a Seeman film because all the arguments/fights on the script are over before we start the shooting. I just have to follow his instructions and act out my scenes.” No wonder that he is doing Seeman’s ‘Vazhthukkal,’ a movie about relationships and a sort of ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun’ in Tamil, and ‘Pagalavan’, his first cop movie.

Next year, he will start work on his second movie with Nishikant in Hindi. Also in the pipeline are ‘Aarya’ and ‘Leelai’ (produced and presented by Ram Gopal Varma). He will start work on Prathap Pothen’s ‘Oru Naal Podhuma’, which he describes as ‘Alai Payuthey – Part II.’

Apart from the reel world, Maddy has established his presence in the virtual world too. He is a character in two games “MiG” and “Madhavan.” But what actually gives him a kick, he says, is flying “remote-controlled helicopters.” Maybe that is what helps him aim for loftier heights.

News input - Courtesy - N.Venkateswaran - The Hindu

Thanks Venkateswaran !