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Kamalhassan talks about the forthcoming release of his film "Panchatanthiram" — a story of love, marriage and misdemeanours.
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IN AN industry, where survival power counts just as much as talent, Kamalhassan is perhaps the biggest survivor of them all. For nearly 25 years, he has dominated Tamil cinema. Kamalhassan has gone beyond the elementary of acting, creating something special out of ordinary masala movies. An adventurous, risk-taking artiste-cum producer, he picks and chooses his subjects with acumen. But, of late, he has been featured more in the gossip columns due to his troubled marriage with his wife Sarika. In an exclusive interview, Kamalhassan, sipping black Brazilian ground coffee (his latest passion), talks about his personal life and the forthcoming release of his laugh riot "Panchatanthiram".
There has been so much rumour and gossip about your personal life. Since you are a major star, your fans and the public have a right to know about your personal turmoil. What is happening on the personal front?
The question of having the right to know is an ambiguous status, you cannot absolutely demand for all your rights. The right to know here is affecting my personal life. The right to privacy is something that I have vehemently demanded all through my career and my fans are aware of that. Some yellow rags, which insist on intruding on my dignity and privacy, are doing it. I subscribe neither to their philosophy nor their magazines. It is like culinary taste, you cannot ridicule the other person's appetite for vegetarian or non-vegetarian fare. In this case, to avoid similes, to kill to appease your curiosity or not to kill, is the question.
The buzz is that your wife Sarika has walked out on you. And you have filed a divorce petition. Please comment?
My previous answer clearly pleads for my need for privacy. A detour to arrive at the same question will not alleviate my hurt in talking about the matter. If anything like that happens, the court will be kind enough to notify the public.
So you are single and happy now?
If living single were of primary importance there would not have been a marriage with Sarikaji, after having two children.
So there was friction between both of you?
No marriage is without friction. As I am a high profile star, please do not grease friction with fiction.
So, what exactly went wrong?
(After a long pause) That is something Sarikaji and I will have to discuss. This discussion will not be in public.
How do you maintain your sanity amidst all this chaos?
My work is the only equilibrium for me. Fortunately, I am in a profession that can be converted into recreation while still on the job.
Would you say that you have had a good run till now, and been at the top for over two decades?
Rajni and I, who have come from the K. Balachandar School, had an unprecedented 25 years of glory. It is a very long run, something that we cannot complain about. Every single month of our career is granted and not taken. The days of seizing the day are gone and now the day seizes us. We are grateful to the audience for giving us such a long time at the top. We are like lawyers and can retire when our speech falters.
Has the failure of "Aalavanthan" deterred you?
No. You have to gauge the failure of a film not by its box office performance alone, but also by its quality. There are certain films like "Citizen Kane", "Anthanaal" or even "Hey Ram" which may not be commercially successful but at the end of the day they will be evaluated on their quality. And probably the businessman who has the rights for these films will make money some day through videos, DVD, Internet or whatever new technology that comes in the future.
Why is it that distributors in Tamil Nadu are not coming forward to buy your new film "Panchatanthiram"?
The producer of "Panchatanthiram" is insisting on a price. The producer believes that he has a potential hit in his hand and it deserves a better price than what is being offered by the distributor.
Tell us something about "Panchatanthiram"?
It is an ensemble piece, which is rare in Tamil films. There is a feeling of camaraderie in the film, which is about friendship. This is a rare combination of talent, ego and virtuosity.
A friendship existed between artistes like Jayaram, Ramesh Arvind, Sreeman, Yugi Sethu and myself. They treat me like an elder brother and I have accepted them into the fold and given them space. The story is about the trials and tribulations of five married men. It is all about love, marriage and misdemeanours!
SREEDHAR PILLAI
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