Thevar Magan, 1992
Director: Bharatan

My habit is such that after I hear the story, I create a picture of the film in my mind.

For Thevar Magan, after I heard the story from Bharatan, I wanted the whole film to have a rustic colour. So I took the extreme step of laying a whole road with coconut husk for a shot of one car going on the road in the beginning of the film. I wanted to blend the scene with the story and give the viewers an idea of what was in store.

There is a scene where the bund has been breached by some people. So the whole thing had to have a wet, messy look. For six days, we had to water the place before every shot.

Many people told me I would get the National award for Thevar Magan. I think it was Ashok Mehta who got the award that year for Bandit Queen. Bandit Queen was amazing.