Bharathiraja and Balachander: The story of ‘Rettaisuzhi’, their only film together

The Eighties of Tamil cinema came live acknowledgment to 2 names: Bharathiraja and K Balachander. If the former, who passed distant recently, showcased films successful authentic rustic locales, the second balanced commercialized elements with socio-political issues.

Both these names were besides instrumental successful chiselling the careers of the 2 large superstars of Tamil cinema, Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth.

The 2 mightiness beryllium champion known for their directorial ventures, but successful 2010, they came unneurotic for a unsocial venture: a movie starring some of them arsenic actors.

That film, titled Rettaisuzhi, was directed by Thamira and produced by Shankar. Based successful Tirunelveli, it starred the 2 legendary directors arsenic rival characters. The task generated sizeable curiosity astatine the time; adjacent Aishwarya Rai Bachchan attended its Chennai audio motorboat arsenic the main guest. Thamira bagged the task due to the fact that helium had a long-standing relation with K Balachander, having worked connected his TV serials, and with Bharathiraja during the Eelam issue. “My relation with the stalwarts made my occupation casual and directing them gave maine confidence,” Thamira told The Hindu during an interview.

Bharathiraja himself had immoderate bittersweet memories astir this project. In an interrogation with The Hindu, helium said, “I wasn’t definite however it would extremity up with america starring together. When I asked Balachander sir (who was the mentor of the film’s director), helium asked maine to bash the role. But, adjacent present I consciousness atrocious that we didn’t person well-written characters successful it.”

His engagement successful Rettaisuzhi also indicates the benignant of respect the filmmaker had for his peers; Bharathiraja and Balachander were often spotted astatine events together, engrossed successful discussion. It is besides good known however the seasoned filmmaker gave respective talents to cinema; galore salient directors and actors today, similar Bhagyaraj, Manobala and Manivannan, person emerged from the ‘Bharathiraja schoolhouse of thought’.