I DIDN'T WANT TO BE BRANDED A THRILLER DIRECTOR

ARVINDH Srinivasan, who is back to the director's chair after the 2022 Arulnithi-starrer Dejavu, reveals that his recent film Tharunam started during a conversation with an old friend.

- SREEJITH MULLPILLY

He says, "One day, a friend of 18 years, whom I worked with in IT, came to meet me for a casual conversation. He asked me about my next commitments; I told him I had different ideas, and he immediately volunteered to help turn one of them into a film. We did not know it would be Tharunam back then."

The filmmaker adds, "Everything happens momentarily in life and the film, hence the title, Tharunam."

Starring Kishen Das, Smruthi Venkat, and Raj Ayyappa, Tharunam is a romance drama. On why he chose to shift genres after making an intense thriller Dejavu, the director explains, "I got many similar offers, but I declined them because I do not want to be branded a thriller director."

However, Arvindh does not think Tharunam is a big shift in genre.

"Tharunam starts as a conventional drama, then enters into a romantic zone, and proceeds towards a completely new territory towards the end," he shares.