He started out as an actor in 1986, and 20 years later this Diwali, Sarath Kumar is going to release his 100th film, Thalaimagan. Not just an acting milestone, this film marks his directorial debut. The banner? His wife Radhika's production house, Radaan Media Works.
When Balaji, the original director left halfway through the film, the mantle fell on Sarath. "I have utilised the experience I have had in the last 100 films. Whatever I have learnt from 99 films will be seen in Thalaimagan. But I prefer being an actor, because a director's job is quite tough."
Revealing that Thalaimagan is the story of a journalist, Sarath said he started out as a newspaper-delivery boy delivering newspapers in Bangalore. "I used to get up at 4 in the morning as papers were delivered very early. After that, I worked as a reporter, and then, in the marketing department of the paper. All this happened before I entered the film industry. So, you can see in this film what I feel a journalist should do and write."
Since noted director Cheran has written the script for the film, we can expect an interesting story. Sarath Kumar said the film dealt with a futuristic thought -- about the depleting ozone layer, dying environment and shortage of water. "Yes, we have made this film in a commercial format, but the issues we deal with are very serious."
Acting with Sarath Kumar are Nayanthara, Seema Biswas, and Mukesh Tiwari. The film's music is by Paul Jacob and Sreekanth Deva.
Text: Shobha Warrier
