We have seen successful ventures like Pasanga and Saivam, which had children playing solid roles. But, these films are more about children, than for them. Even if the makers want to do a film that would take the kids to a fantasy ride, they come across a lot of hurdles including financial backing. Though a few recent films had solid child characters, those films required prominent stars to establish the child’s role. We talk to a few directors and child artistes and find out why there is paucity of children’s films in the Tamil film industry.
Vijay, director of Saivam and Deiva Thirumagal, says, “Like any other film, children-based films too need a strong script to pull it off. There should be a proper content. Also, budget is very important. We need a proper financial support to make such films. Usually, they are not commercially viable unless there is a star in the cast. And that is the reason why not many producers are coming forward to back up those projects.”
Vijay, who introduced Baby Sara to Tamil films, opines that it is not very easy to direct a child. “I want more filmmakers to take a chance and explore this genre. It’s not so easy to take a film with a child as its central character. We have to be really patient with them.”
Director Pandiraj, whose expertise is children’s films, opines that the reason behind the lack of quality children’s films is the market constraints — “Take all the children films which have performed well including Pasanga, Pasanga 2 and Kaaka Muttai. They are profitable indeed but you can’t call them blockbusters.
That’s the reason why producers are hesitant to bankroll such films. Even they can’t be blamed since youngsters are the majority among film goers. They wouldn’t prefer this genre obviously.”
How can anyone forget the character played by Esther Anil in Kamal Haasan’s Paapanasam? The child actor, who is currently working with director Halitha Shameem’s upcoming film Minmini, enjoyed playing children’s roles in all the south Indian languages. “I was always open to play different characters in films.
Thankfully, I got good roles in all the films so far,” she says, adding, “I am a person who enjoys watching adventurous films like TinTin and films with strong content like Kaaka Muttai. Another film that caught my attention is Journey to the Center of the Earth. I want to do a similar kind of character played by Josh Hutcherson.”
On the other hand, Pandiraj says, “It is really tough to find the right balance between making movies about children and those for children. Kids generally don’t prefer the former kind. The latter are the ones with superheroes and fantasy films. But to make them is not an easy task. You should get into their world. A thirty-year-old should transform into five-year-old which, if you ask me, is not a cake walk.”
He is also against the use of violence in children’s films — “If a film’s made for kids, it should be devoid of all the smoking scenes and drinking scenes.”
(With inputs from Kirubhakar Purushothaman)
