‘PS-1 established characters, PS-2 will enthrall the audience’

CHENNAI: The team of Ponniyin Selvan, Trisha Krishnan, Jayam Ravi, Karthi, Sobitha Dhulipala and Aishwarya Lekshmi meet us at a city hotel as they begin the promotions of the second and the final instalment of the Ponniyin Selvan franchise.

Fans, who knew this gathered outside the hotel to catch a glimpse of their matinee idols.

Dressed in a black kurta, Jayam Ravi is just back from his Europe trip with his wife Aarthi, and he tells us its an experience of sorts and witnessing the northern lights in Finland was cherry on top of the cake.

While Trisha, dressed in a green saree, is just back from Coimbatore after promoting PS-2 on Sunday. She says with a smile, “I am trying into the zone again and figuring out things around her.”

Karthi is seen in a blue shirt paired with white t-shirt. You tell him he looks the youngest in the lot and he laughs, “Enna neenga otreenga la? (I know you are pulling my leg)” No Karthi, you really do.

The interview begins and Trisha opens up saying Ponniyin Selvan 1 established all characters and their shades well and part 2 will be an exciting ride. “The first part was a tease into characters and I can’t divulge more. As for Kundavai and Vanthiyathevan’s romantic portions, there will be some serious romance- more than just eye contact and flirtatious dialogues. That I can assure you,” she tells us.

Karthi made it to Vanthiyathevan’s role, a character that was earlier considered by the late MG Ramachandran and actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan.

“Like how they say our name is etched in every grain of rice we eat, my dad often says that every frame has our name etched in it. I see it as pure destiny and I wanted to make use of every little opportunity I had as Vanthiyathevan. This is the best I could deliver to my potential based on my experience. However, several people in and away from the industry praised me for my performance.”

As we ask him to name a few, Ravi joins the conversation and reveals, “Everyone except Mani sir did. I was surprised to get a call from Rajini sir, who appreciated my performance.” Trisha though replies, “No, Mani sir appreciated my performance in the movie,” much to Karthi and Ravi’s surprise.

The second part completely revolves around Jayam Ravi, who plays Ponniyin Selvan. “In the first part you would have seen me as a mahout, a prince in the hiding and a spy. How he transforms into a prince and that would workout well in the second part, I believe and how he enters Thanjavur,” he tells us.

Mani Ratnam’s portrayal of female characters in the film is always a delight but with Kalki’s writing, the role of women in Chola empire gets another elevation altogether.

As we ask this question to Trisha, Aishwarya and Sobitha, Mani Ratnam walks in and asks, “Are they complaining about me?” and he lets Aishwarya talk.

“To be honest, when I was auditioning for PS, I was only praying that he ropes me in at least for his next. Another interesting information is that, I was initially cast as Vanathi before Sobitha was finalised to play the role.

However, when I was asked to play Poonkuzhali, I completely surrendered myself to Mani sir and went by his vision.”

Sobitha seconds Aishwarya’s statement and says, “All people have lots of emotions and dimensions. In cinema, we don’t get to portray them all as characters are under developed. When they are done well, it gives all of us that arch and scope to perform. The entire credit goes to the screenplay and the writing.”

Trisha smiles, “I am a proper Chennai ponnu. We all grew up watching Mani sir’s movies and there is no one iota of thought on how he would portray his female characters. Like Aishu said, he gave us a good deal of preparation to get into the skin of the character. He would tell us what he wanted from us but he also gave us the time to process it.”

Mani Ratnam is a huge fan of Ponniyin Selvan novel and he says, “I loved reading it more than directing as reading doesn’t require budget, call-sheets and getting things organised.”