A.K.Sajan - Happy after Naadiya….

A.K. Sajan, scenarist-turned-director is rather happy after Naadiya Kollappetta Rathri, the recently-released K. Madhu-directed Suresh Gopi-starrer, which was scripted by him. Sajan, hailing from Kochi, has penned the stories and screenplays for many successful films like Kashmeeram, Crime File, Aparichithan, Chinthamani Kolacase etc and has also directed Stop Violence and Lanka.

For the past many months he was immersed in writing the screenplay for Naadiya Kollappetta Rathri. He took considerable pains doing the script, which according to him, did pay in terms of the response the film evoked all over the State. In this casual interview with Unni Nair of nowrunning.com, A.K. Sajan talks about his experience doing the script of the film and being with the crew throughout the production phase. He also talks about his own directorial ventures. Excerpts:

Let's begin with Naadiya Kollappetta Rathri. How did you chance upon the idea of doing the script for a thriller on board a train?

I've heard people talking of fresher and more innovative types of films being done in Tamil, with emphasis on variety in theme and treatment. Such comments, heard from various quarters, provoked me into thinking why I shouldn't try something new in Malayalam too. That's what led me to the script for Naadiya…

What was your primary concern while penning the script for Naadiya..?

The primary concern was that the film should keep the viewers on the edge of their seats till the very end. And for that I had to keep thinking from the perspective of the viewers throughout the script. I believe that everyone who comes to see an investigative thriller becomes a sort of a detective himself, trying to find out or guess who the culprit is right from the moment the crime is committed. And this is what I had been constantly reminding myself of all through the scripting of the film. That helped me a lot. I had to pay much attention to the psychological angle of the film too.

Could you elaborate on that?

As you know the film has as pivotal characters a pair of twin sisters. It has been observed that twins have some kind of jealousy towards each other, even from their childhood days. This is deep rooted in some twins. Many eminent psychologists have dealt with this matter very analytically. And this is the psychological angle that interested me and helped me in moulding the characters of Naadiya and Naadira.

Could Kavya Madhavan do justice to the two characters, viewing from your perspective?

Definitely. Kavya's performance was the highlight of the film. Kavya is an immensely talented actress and she has proved this a number of times. That is what made director K. Madhu and me think of Kavya for the film. She has lived up to our expectations to the fullest extent.

You also did a bit of acting in Naadiya…Tell us about your experience doing that?

That was a rather insignificant role and there is nothing much to tell. There was this role of a director shooting a film and K. Madhu asked me to do it, something that I had already done in real life. There wasn't much of acting in that, and my character had no significance at all in the film.

Now, coming to your directorial ventures, what in your opinion was the reason for Lanka becoming a box office failure?

It was mainly because the film had a rather unconventional theme, treated in an unconventional manner. Our audience doesn't like seeing a nymphomaniac as the heroine and that too when the heroine has prominence in the story. It matters a lot when the film is a Suresh Gopi-starrer.

Any plans for another directorial outing? It was heard that you are going to make a sequel to Stop Violence.

Sure. I am planning to make a film that would be as shockingly different as my earlier films. I believe in treading fresh and hitherto unexplored tracks. I have a totally new theme in my mind for my next film, though I wouldn't like to elaborate on that for the present, as thing are yet to be worked out. As for the sequel to Stop Violence, I definitely have that in mind. I have plans to do that sometime next year. Meanwhile I am also doing a script for Joshi.

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Nadiya Kollapeta Rathri