Her director Lijin Jose on how Urvashi, Parvathy Thiruvothu and Prathap Pothen came together for the film | Exclusive interview

For director Lijin Jose, the auteur KG George is one of his all-time favorite filmmakers who has left an indelible mark in Malayalam cinema. Lijin, who directed the much-talked-about documentary 8½ Intercuts: Life and Films of K.G. George, has also chosen distinct subjects for each of his major projects in the last decade.

For his debut directorial film, Friday, in 2012, Lijin teamed up with Fahad Faasil, who was then struggling to make a mark in his second outing. After the Kunchacko Boban-starrer Law Point in 2014 and the documentary on KG George, Lijin is geared up for his next directorial Her, starring Urvashi and Parvathy Thiruvothu, which will make its direct OTT premiere on Manorama Max on November 29.

Ahead of Her premiere, Lijin talks about working in a women-oriented film, directing the late Prathan Pothen in one of his last projects, roping in Urvashi and Parvathy Thiruvothu for the film, and more in an exclusive interview with OTTplay.

Her director Lijin Jose Interview

Her is said to be about five different women from different walks of life. Could you tell us more about the film?

This is not a larger-than-life story. The film revolves around women of different age groups. The issues they confront in their daily lives, and how they tackle or overcome these. That is the basic plot. It is not an anthology, each of the women has their storylines but some of them are interconnected.

Why did you choose this subject?

For male writers or male filmmakers, we see women and their problems through our point of view. Our writer for Her is Archana Vasudev. So in Archana’s stories, there was a different perspective and the way she treated her subjects was quite unique. In the film, women have to address the problems to move on in life and how do they do it - I found that very interesting. I had a conviction that viewers would also be able to appreciate it. Maybe from a male point of view, these issues may look trivial but for women, the problems are real.

Archana is a long-time friend and we have associated on projects before also. When I read the first draft of her project, I found it interesting and when I pitched the idea to production, they also liked it.

Earlier this year, there was much hue and cry about women not getting significant roles in Malayalam films, especially blockbusters. Would you say movies like Her is an answer to that?

I don’t think filmmakers consciously took a decision not to make women-oriented subjects. But when we work out theatre business and all, the weightage goes more for hero-specific subjects. If they get a space to do women-centric movies, there are filmmakers who are keen on taking up such projects. But when commercial or business aspects come into the picture, such projects may not get realised. Even when we say Her is a women-centric movie, Prathap Pothen, Guru Somasundaram, and Rajesh Madhavan are also part of this film.

Why did you opt for a direct OTT release? Was it because of a female-oriented subject?

Post Covid, there has been a change in the movie viewing experience. If you look at the releases post-pandemic, you will notice that most people heading to theatres are expecting to see a spectacle. Movies with an emotional narrative or connection do not get much of a reception in theatres. This film unfolds in mostly women’s landscape and we felt that audiences would be able to better connect with it in an OTT space. Even when we pitched the idea, we had planned it as an OTT project.

You have Archana Vasudev as the scriptwriter. Do you believe a woman can narrate women’s stories the best?

Yes, definitely. The female perspective brings a huge difference to the project. Their way of thinking is completely different from most male filmmakers. So they can bring that perspective shift. So if there is a female brain to prod us in that direction, we would be able to bring a wider and inclusive perspective, that’s what I feel.

Both Urvashi and Parvathy Thiruvothu - the two powerhouses of acting - are part of Her. Your experience of collaborating with them.

This is the first time that I am working with Urvashi Chechi. She is a senior artist, I have always wanted to work with. We had first approached Urvashi Chechi for this project and only after she gave her nod, the project actually took off. She was very supportive. She had some health issues but apart from that, she is very comfortable to work with. And her performance would always be better than what we expected. We grew up watching her films. To get an opportunity to work with was really exciting.

With the rest of the cast, we knew them before or have worked with them before. First, when we pitched the idea to (producer) Anish, we had only suggested Urvashi Chechi and the rest of the cast would be small artists. But Anish was the one who suggested that we should get all the A-list actors. That was how Parvathy and the rest of the cast came on board.

Parvathy was also excited when we contacted her about the project. Everyone also gave constructive feedback on each other's stories. It was an organic process. Also, artists like Parvathy are very professional. More than anything else, they make sure they deliver what is expected of them.

Parvathy and Urvashi had also starred in Ullozhukku, which was released earlier this year. Which was the first to be shot?

Her was the first film to be shot. After Her, they joined the sets of Ullozhukku. Ullozhukku director Christo Tomy is also a friend, so we used to communicate about the dates and all. First Urvashi joined Ullozhukku and then Parvathy after completing the portions for Her.

Read our review of Ullozhukku: Terrific Parvathy, Urvashi anchor this emotionally pregnant film about secrets and closure  

Her is also among the last few projects of the late actor Prathap Pothen. Your experience of collaborating with the veteran actor.

This was one of his projects in Malayalam after a gap. The interesting factor is Prathap sir and Urvashi Chechi are a pair in this film. We first narrated the story to Urvashi Chechi, and she asked us who was doing the husband character and she suggested Prathap sir. ‘It would be nice if he came opposite me. We have also never worked together,’ she said. And when we first met Prathap sir, he suggested Urvashi Chechi. This was an interesting coincidence.

Even the rest of the cast, including Parvathy, were excited when they heard about Prathap Pothen and Urvashi pairing.

He did not have any health issues during the shoot. And it was very shocking for us when we heard the news of his demise. He was very excited to work with the new generation. He would often come up to us and say that ‘during our times, we did not do like this.’ Even after completing his shoot, when he was about to leave, he saw that we were shooting outdoors. He spent another 2-3 hours with us and then left. A senior actor like him needn’t have spent so much time with us. He bonded well with everyone on the set. He drove his way back to Chennai. Then we heard about the news, we all were very shocked. He died within a month of our shoot’s pack-up. Sir had not even dubbed for the film and it was mimicry artist Mahesh Kunjumon, who dubbed for the character in the movie. After hearing Mahesh’s dubbed portions, Urvashi Chechi asked if Prathap sir had dubbed before his demise. After the first dialogue itself, Urvashi Chechi removed her headset and asked if Prathap had dubbed for the portions. She was also very surprised to know someone else had dubbed. That much convincing was his work.

First Mahesh tried and felt that he was not able to get Prathap sir’s husky voice correct. I also tried other options. But nothing worked out, and I called Mahesh again. Mahesh took the pilot episodes, practised based on that, and then dubbed for Prathap sir. Mahesh has put in a lot of effort for this. Nobody would be able to guess it was not Prathap sir, he was that convincing.

The movie was shot in 2022, but is only getting released now.

The delay was because of the post-production work, dubbing issues, background score, and all. Also, cracking the OTT deal also took time. The OTT platforms were not keen on taking direct film premieres at the time. And we had always planned it as a direct OTT release.

Your first directorial film Friday, starred Fahadh Faasil and Ann Augustine. This was among the initial films when Fahad was making a comeback. Your experience of working with Fahadh on your very first movie.

We are all from Alleppy. We were all struggling at that time. And I always had great confidence in his acting skills. But then convincing producers was a bit difficult. I knew him before itself. We were all struggling to make that project come alive. It was a first for many of us.

It was Sandra Thomas’ first production, my first directorial. At that time, we were all young, not much maturity or experience. But because of our young age, and the zest to prove ourselves that we could pull off that film. There were over 50 characters in the film and it was about events in a single day plus it had a very complex climax on a boat. But now if you ask me, I would think twice before attempting anything like that.

But your next directorial Law Point, starring Kunchako Boban and Namitha Pramod, is very different from Friday. This had more commercial elements.

Nedumudi Venu Chettan first told me about this project. But I was not involved in the project right from the beginning. After a heavy project such as Friday, this was less stressful and so I was able to enjoy the process. We had a great time shooting the film.

Your documentary 8½ Intercuts: Life and Films of K.G. George was much talked about. How did you get involved in the project?

After Friday’s release, I read an interview of KG George. He mentioned Friday as one of the recent films he had liked. I was excited after hearing that someone of his stature had talked about my film. So I called him up and said would like to meet him. He spoke a lot and even said Friday is the kind of film he would like to make. He is one of my favourite directors.

I was very curious about the persona of this auteur filmmaker who has done such diverse kinds of movies. But it took around four years to complete it. It is one of my most satisfying works till now. I also wanted to document his works for future generations to remember about this great filmmaker in Malayalam cinema.

Could you tell us about your upcoming projects?

My upcoming project is Chera with Roshan Mathew and Nimisha Sajayan. It is a slow-burner or murder mystery kind of film. It is in the post-production stage, it will be mostly out in 2025. Then there are some other projects I am working on.

Also read: Roshan Mathew on Chera: Lijin Jose has the courage to become an independent voice  

Is there any particular genre that you would like to be associated with more?

I don’t want to be boxed into a particular kind of genre. Don’t want the audience to think that I do only one type of film. Filmmakers, whom I look up to, have all done diverse kinds of films.

Her, starring Urvashi, Parvathy Thiruvothu, Aishwarya Rajesh, Remya Nambeesan, Lijomol Jose, Rajesh Madhavan, Prathap Pothen, and Guru Somasundaram, will be released on Manorama Max and OTTplay Premium on November 29.