Tharun Moorthy: Thudarum is a family drama; it’s not feel good and definitely not…

One of the biggest debates about filmmaker Tharun Moorthy’s next, the Mohanlal-led Thudarum, which releases on April 25, is whether it is a thriller or a feel-good entertainer. Tharun is clear when he says that his film is best described as a family drama, which contrary to belief, is not a feel-good movie. Drama, he says, is the central axis of the film. That said, the filmmaker, while talking to Saina South Plus, said that he is also aware of Thudarum being compared to Drishyam, which he remains unsure whether to see as a good sign or not.

'Thudarum is about the drama in one man's life'

Tharun, who has been following all the online discussions about this, says that audiences should understand that he is not the kind of filmmaker to follow the trend of making a film like the cult trendsetter. The intention was never to make Thudarum as something like Drishyam. He also dispelled theories that the second half of the film will follow an investigation, stating instead that his story is only about events happening in one person’s life.

Check out: Thudarum star Mohanlal’s best movies that defined the 90s Malayalam cinema 

During the podcast, Tharun Moorthy, whose signature it is to do films with a real-life base, like Operation Java and Saudi Vellakka, for instance , said that it was important that Thudarum also rings true in that sense. But before doing the film he had no idea if there was a touch of real-life inspiration in the story. When he was approached to direct a film for Malayalam superstar Mohanlal and was given a narration of the basic plot, there was something about it that got him wondering what sparked the initial seed of the story.

To understand Tharun Moorthy the filmmaker, watch his films, Operation Java and Saudi Vellakka with OTTplay Premium 

In the 10-minute narration, Tharun felt a spark that it could be turned into a good film, but did not feel there was anything from real life in it. Yet, he wanted to have a conversation with the writer and met up with him, which is when Tharun realized that KR Sunil is a photographer, whose speciality it is to freeze moments from life with his lens. That being the case, the subject of Thudarum would have, most definitely, taken shape from one such photographic moment, which Tharun wanted to know.

After a lengthy discussion about the plans for the film, Tharun asked Sunil how he thought of the subject, which is when he told the filmmaker about a very random scene that caught his attention. Sunil was travelling by bus, when he noticed a stranger, leaning against a wall and just gazing at a stationary car. That moment was all that Tharun needed to understand the emotion of the story, and, most importantly, to imprint that photographic frame in his brain. Tharun went ahead and incorporated this sequence in the script, which will be seen in the film, which releases in theatres on April 25.