Kolai, a title that hasn’t been used for a movie in 100 years: Balaji Kumar

“For the first time in 100 years of cinema, a film gets Kolai as title. No one has used this word for a movie title before probably because it is something that is commonly used. However, when you look back at it, the title is simple yet massive. Isn’t that what minimalism is all about?” Balaji tells DT Next. The photoshoot of the cast was made in Vanity fair style with a stunning backlot portrait of the entire cast that has Vijay Antony, Ritika Singh Murli Sharma, Radikaa Sarathkumar, Meenakshii Chaudhary, Arjun Chidambaram, and Siddhartha Shankar. “Vanity fair is the biggest magazine on the planet and I wanted the picture to be taken in a backlot portrait shot. Not many people understand the concept behind this,” he replies. 

Balaji opens up that the film is a murder mystery. “There were people who asked me if the film will be similar to other murder mysteries. For instance, Knives Out. Of course all murder mysteries tend to have the same paradigm. However, the treatment isn’t the same. Kolai is inspired by a real-life incident that took place in New York in 1923. I have given it a different texture and the story takes place in Madras—a Madras that is completely born out of my imagination. A clean, crisp, stylish and sleek Madras,” adds the director. Balaji also reveals the reason behind doing a film after seven years post Vidiyum Munn. “I could have done half a dozen films in these seven years. But there is a difference between doing a film and doing ‘the film’. That’s how this script will be received by the audience across centres,” he says. Kolai was shot in different schedules for 75 days. “We shot with a 321-member unit on a certain day with different lighting. In Kolai some scenes required as many as 250 lights and some required only four. It will be a visual treat,” he concludes.