Only Tamil film to be screened at IFFI-2014 is a completely out-of-the-box first effort

In a year when Tamil film industry has churned more than 100 films and is expected to bring out several dozen more, a feature film directed by a debutant director with a crew comprising entirely of first timers is the only Tamil film that will be screened at the Prestigious International Film Festival of India 2014 to be held during the end of this month in Goa.

Director Bramma’s maiden venture ‘Kutram Kadithal’, a crime thriller involving the entangled life of four individuals, had caught the attention of the selectors and will be screened along with 25 other feature films in the Indian Panorama along with the award winning ‘Yellow’ and ‘North 24 Kaatham’.

Director Bramma with school children during shoot of 'Kutram Kadithal

“It is a reward for great team effort,” says Bramma who completed the film with a shoestring budget of just rupees two crore over a period of 50 days. “Our film faced stiff competition from several popular films such as Jigardanda and Pannayarum Padminium which makes it even more special.”

When Bramma, a theatre artiste with over 15 years of experience in street theatre decided to do a feature film, he did not go to any established names in the industry and instead trusted his close group of friends who had worked with him in theatre for several years. “We were initially skeptical about the outcome as we had used the most cost effective means to complete the film. Hence, we decided to first test the response in the film festival circuit and have been pleasantly surprised by the results,” Bramma says.

Among some of the improvisations made by Bramma and his team include casting 30-odd children of a school at Kavarapettai near here, where much of the filming has been completed. “Every day, we shot in the school premises using the school children and during these 50 days of shooting, we picked up the children from their homes and dropped them back late at night,” says P. Deveraj, assistant director. “A 12-year-old boy living at a government run home has also performed a crucial role in the film,” he adds.

The movie, which has been screened in several films festivals in the country and abroad, has not yet been released in TN and is expected to come out soon.