Read the full story here:
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Hi, this is Manjusha Radhakrishnan, I'm the entertainment editor of Gulf News Dubai, and
00:17I'm here with South Indian actor J.M. Ravi. Perhaps you can tell us, he's here for the
00:22movie Brothers. We are atop a yacht, and I've not done this before, I'll be honest. It's
00:27been a long since we've gone sailing and discussing a movie, but you can tell us, was
00:32this your idea, or you thought you wanted to do something different in Dubai? Dubai
00:37is always different for all of us. Whenever we think about Dubai, they say there is nothing
00:45as impossible. So we thought we have to do something big, something unique, and producer
00:52Mr. Sundar sir, he got in touch with his friends here, and they said yeah, whatever you
01:01want, yes, let's go ahead. And even for me, this is the first time promoting a film
01:06instead of a yacht. I've done multiple films which combines the story with the yacht and
01:13sailing and all that, but this is my first time and I'm enjoying it. Of course, the Dubai
01:18landscape is beautiful as always. I'm sure we'll enjoy that view. Perhaps you can tell me
01:23about Brothers. It's a Diwali release. It's a big one for you, right? Getting a festival
01:27window release itself is tough. Tell me all about Brothers. Why should we watch it?
01:32Brother is a movie which definitely every family member wants to watch because there is so
01:39much value in the film. Nowadays there are so many action films that are coming out. The
01:45family audiences who wants to watch family movies, the ratio is coming down. I'm not
01:52blaming it on the South Indian films, but it might be an accidental thing. It was not an
01:59intentional thing. So even me, I started doing action films, thrillers. My fans and my
02:05friends, everybody is saying where is that old Jayam Ravi who can dance and who can
02:10entertain people with some colourful clothes, with some lovely dialogues, with some great
02:18space to have a family audience sitting and watching in the theatre. Then I thought
02:23about it. Yeah, we are missing that out and I thought I will do an out and out family film.
02:30That's how this happened. Mr. Rajesh, director Rajesh, he had two scripts for me and I loved
02:37both the lines. But this was, my friends were also expecting that I do a family film. My
02:43friends were asking about it. So, I thought we will go ahead with this and I am in love with the movie.
02:48It's so interesting you say that now you want to go back to the family genre because right
02:53now we are inundated with darker the better. Like more violent, more shocking, more
02:58provocative. Where do you as an actor feel? Are we going wrong somewhere? Do you think
03:03there should be a correction of sorts? Are we going overboard with it?
03:07I think the initial attraction for an action film is something, you know, they are surprised
03:15people when they see action films. It is like there is something in the movie, you know.
03:20There is some attraction. Be it violent or be it thrilling but there has to have a timeline
03:30for that, you know. They have to follow a timeline, kind of how the narrative goes. If
03:36there is a little problem with the screenplay, then the movie doesn't do well.
03:42But the initial attraction is of course, yes, you can cut the trailer in whichever way you
03:48want, make it so interesting. But once you come into the theatre, the film has to have
03:53what it has promised. Otherwise, it will go astray. But for a family film, the initial
03:58attraction is not that much.
04:00And it's word of mouth.
04:01Yeah, it's word of mouth. They can say it's a family film. We have watched many family
04:05films. I have done many family films. Each one is different. I have acted as Santosh
04:11in two different movies. One is something, something, Unakarai Menokum. My character
04:15name is Santosh. That guy is a bubbly guy. I mean he doesn't care about anybody else.
04:20He is too open, extravagant he is, whatever he does. But the other Santosh in Santosh
04:27Subramaniam, that again is a family film. He is an introvert, listens to his dad. He
04:34does love but loves in private.
04:38He is more of an introvert.
04:39Introvert. So even though it's a family film, there is a difference between my own
04:46films I am saying. So initially it won't be that attractive. But any family film, once
04:52it's released, not like an action film, people are going to come and rush in.
04:57There is a lot of spectacle.
04:58Yeah, that's true. But the emotion which brings out the family film, that brings out is
05:05something extraordinary and I have been rewarded in many ways.
05:10People want you in those roles. I mean I think that's where your fan following is also, right?
05:14Yes, and I am glad about it.
05:16Yeah, because people keep saying he should play family man more. Is that a good thing
05:21though? People don't want you to. What do you think? Do you feel stereotyped as an actor?
05:26Yeah, now I am 21 years in the industry. So people want me to do family films also. Not
05:33that you do only family films. They like my Taniya Varun Chinsan action thriller. They
05:38like my Mirudan which is a zombie film. I did a movie called Tik Tik Tik. It is a space
05:44related film. So they want that also. But they are saying that give me a taste of family
05:51guy sometimes in your career. At least two years once.
05:56Two years. That's fair enough.
06:03I think the respect excites me of making good movies, of making good entertainers. That
06:10respect which you know for a hard work when people appreciate it, that excites me. It
06:16is not about fame at all. It is about the respect and every hard working film maker,
06:24actor deserves it.
06:27Yeah, and do you have a process? What is your process? If I were to tell you, if I were to
06:32watch you in action like with each movie do you go through a process of like cutting off,
06:36method acting or anything on those lines?
06:39My process is more happens when I listen to the script. It is like picking whatever comes
06:46out of the director's mouth or the storyteller's mouth at that moment. It gives me a beautiful
06:52imagination of how I am going to do that particular scene after six months maybe. I will still
06:59remember the particular dialogue that the director told me. If it is missing I will
07:04go and ask him. That day you said this, it is not written in the script. That was six
07:11months ago. How do you remember that? Because that made an impact in me. That made me think
07:18how I should act the scene after six months, eight months, one year, how much ever the
07:23shooting process takes. So, if that is not there then I cannot make that, recreate that
07:29impact when you told me the script. So, I remember everything that time. My process
07:34is more during the script narration. For example, Ponniyan Selvan, Maniratnam sir comes
07:42and tells me, Ravi you have six months, start living today only as Ponniyan Selvan. Sir,
07:48what should I do? Go, feel you are Ponniyan Selvan, look around, see whatever you can
07:55see is yours. A king feels that way. The respect he gets from his people, the love he gets
08:02from his family, brother and sister and father, feel all that. Live like a king?
08:08Yeah, live like a king. Then he also did many photo shoots for me to make me look like that,
08:16make me look commanding. You have to look commanding the emperor. Once you wear the
08:20clothes and everything, how to carry it. We are all wearing mortal clothes now. So, we don't
08:26even know how to carry it. That gravitance. But you carried it off so well. Yes, you did.
08:31You look like a king. But I think Maniratnam brings out the best in people as well. Actors,
08:37like anybody, Abhishek Bachchan or Vikram or Aishwarya, anybody you can think of. Do you
08:44choose directors or directors choose you? I think the script chooses both of us.
08:50Really? Yeah, because see I am looking for good scripts,
08:54the director is looking for good actors and it's two different directions. Coming and
09:00merging at one point where that beautiful culmination happens, I think. But of course,
09:07you need good directors, cinematographers, excellent production team, everything is there.
09:13But without these two starting, you know, the director and the actor, there is, I think there
09:19is nothing, I won't say beyond that, that is the basic, I would say. But how important is
09:27box office success to you then, if that's the case? Like you look at scripts, sometimes what
09:32happens on paper it's amazing and then when you see it on the big screen, you're like what was I
09:36doing? Yeah, yeah. And then you also evaluate yourself, right? Exactly. We learn from our
09:42mistakes, yeah of course. I mean without mistakes you won't grow that much, I would say it easily.
09:48But box office is important because see when you want to make a film and it should be
09:54appreciated by the critics, then you can only do a press show for the movie. If you want to make
10:00movies for yourself, you can watch it in your home theatre but you have to decide whom you are
10:06going to do the film for. If it is for the audience, then you have to address it to the audience. That
10:11means you have to have a success at the box office because nobody is going to come and
10:15watch your film. So, I always think a commercial film has to be made for the audience and has to
10:23be a big hit at the box office because film is also money, you know. There's time and money
10:29spent in that. You have to recover that. Only if you recover that, the industry is prospering.
10:35You know fans will come and watch films like that again and again. So, it has to prosper so it has
10:42to be a box office. You think so too. What about OTTs? We are in a very interesting stage now
10:47where people even big budget movies are coming straight to OTTs. So, where do you stand in all of
10:52that? Do you think it matters? As an actor, you think is it the best time? Because it doesn't
10:56matter if it is even theatrical great. If it is OTT also, it is getting love from different countries.
11:02No, I think OTT is amazing but it is like a memory for me, you know. It's not the event.
11:09Theatre going experience is the event.
11:11You still love that? Diwali?
11:13You can't change that experience.
11:16You are old school in that. You are like I want to have people come together, have popcorn.
11:21Definitely.
11:21Have a community experience.
11:23Yeah, it is also part of our culture I think. To anybody who wants to take their children to a
11:28movie, they will appreciate you know the Marvel films. If I take my kids to Marvel films and show
11:34them on theatre, I will get brownie points for that. So, in OTT if you watch, it's not going to
11:42be you know an event. It will be a good watch, yes of course. Have a good experience. But in the
11:48theatre, watching it with everybody, say at least in Chennai we have 1000 seat capacity for the
11:56audience. 1000 seats. Imagine 1000 people clapping at one moment for one scene and any highlight of
12:03the movie. That's an experience, right?
12:06You live for that. I get that. Last question, how do you filter out the hate that comes? I mean
12:10being a public figure is also about getting the claps like you said from thousands but it's also
12:15being immediately written off or cancelled. How do you navigate the hate?
12:20I am a very positive person first of all.
12:22Yes, I can see that.
12:23And if I see hate, I will run 10 steps you know in the opposite direction. I can't attract hate.
12:30I don't know what is hate basically because I don't want to delve into it too much and understand
12:36why it is happening and all that because you are yourself. You can't change that
12:43and whatever you are born with, whenever you are created, you are born with your personality,
12:48your character trait. Everything is done. That's it. If you are that person who doesn't like hate,
12:56you can't attract hate. So, I always stay out of it. Once I see or sense a little bit,
13:02it's better to stay out of it rather than you know going and addressing it and trying to make
13:08the other person fine. No, you don't have time for that.
13:11Oh, lovely. I like that attitude. It's like just stay away from hate.
13:15Thank you so much for entertaining us. This Diwali is going to be a massive one for you,
13:19right? Thank you.
13:19Yes, yes.
13:19And all the family guys have to come. That's the idea.
13:22Of course, of course.
13:23It's a family-friendly movie which we don't have many of these days.
13:26You see the poster, you know, it attracts only family crowds and they're going to be happy
13:30watching this movie. Excellent. I hope you have
13:32a spectacular Diwali and thank you for entertaining us.
13:35My pleasure. Thank you.