Yaathisai director Dharani Rasendran: I wanted to test my mettle with this historical fiction on Pandiyas - Exclusive

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call Dharani Rasendran's Yaathisai, a dream project. Ever since he completed his graduation in engineering in 2012, Dharani has been contemplating making a full-fledged feature film and his dream has finally come true as his maiden venture Yaathisai is gearing up to hit screens tomorrow (April 21).

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Interestingly, the film is a fictional account of the Pandiya dynasty, one among the trinity of the empires that ruled Tamilakam, the other being the Cholas and Cheras. "Unlike the Cholas, there is only historical research on the Pandiyas, and not many fictional stories around them. So, I wanted to make a historical fiction. The term 'Yaathisai' refers to the 'south direction'. The story is about those living in the south."

The plot is said to be set in the 7th century when the Pandiya prince Ranadheeran, who ruled at the time when the Chola dynasty had lost its power. The director adds that as an independent filmmaker, he would travel a lot with his team and it was the same team that has been the backbone of his debut directorial." The star cast comprises people from my team and the rest were chosen through auditions. There were around 150 people involved in the making of Yaathisai."

Interestingly, this magnum opus is a handiwork of a pack of newcomers, right from the cast to the crew. The film features Shakthi Mithran as Prince Ranadheeran, Seyon, Rajalakshmi, Guru Somasundram, Chandrakumar, Semmalar Annam, Subathra, Samar, Vijay Seyon to name a few.

Dharani Rajendran reveals that the work for Yaathisai began way back before the pandemic-induced lockdowns. "The pre-production work that we undertook for the project was on a massive scale. It was because of the strong research and homework that we were able to wrap the project in a span of 70 days and with such a minimal budget. There were many challenges, in terms of sound design and more. We met many scholars and referred to many available literary works. And later, the auditions were held for the team."

Music for Yaathisai is by Chakravarthi, cinematography by Akilesh Kathamuthu and editing by Mahendran Ganesan. Dialogues are by Thirumurugan Kalilingam. 

Also Read: Yaathisai: The Pandiyas to arrive before Cholas, the periodic film to hit screens on THIS date 

Was making a film of such grandeur, a challenging task, considering this was his maiden project? "Actually, I had earlier made a film called Gnana Serukku, which made its debut at the International film festival. The film is yet to hit screens. But, you can call Yaathisai my maiden project as this is my first ever theatrical release."

He adds, " Right when the idea of Yaathisai was conceived, we knew the film would have many challenges. But I wanted to test my mettle and took it up as a challenge. The film was predominantly shot in Theni and Cumbum, and some parts were canned in Kanchipuram, Senji and Udayarpalayam."

In the meantime, Mani Ratnam's much-awaited magnum opus Ponninyin Selvan, too, is gearing up to hit screens next week (April 28). Was it a deliberate plan to release the film ahead of Ponniyin Selvan? "Not at all! It happened to be a sheer coincidence. " 

Yaathisai is bankrolled by Venus infotainment & Six star entertainment.