What is common between India’s freedom and Tinu Pappachan’s debut film Swathanthryam Ardharathriyil (Freedom at Midnight)? No, the film has nothing to do with the freedom struggle movement nor is it based on any character from the acclaimed book of the same name. Swathanthryam Ardharathriyil is set in the contemporary world but the one behind bars that not many are privy to. Tinu’s film unfolds largely in the darkest and loneliest hours of the night and looks at the uncommon struggles of some common people. Tinu is slightly tensed about the audience reaction to Swathanthryam Ardharathriyil — which is releasing today. With evolving audience tastes and content overriding every other aspect, Tinu is hoping for the best. It may be Tinu’s first turn as an independent director but he is no greenhorn in the industry.
He has worked with some of the established names like Babu Janardhanan, Lenin Rajendran, A. K. Sajan and Lijo Jose Pellisserry as an assistant director. In fact his last project as an AD was Lijo’s award- winning Ee Ma Yau. Swathanthryam Ardharathriyil’s trailer had high octane action sequences, picturised on powerful lead characters in monochrome frames, and has already raised expectation levels. Angamaly Diaries fame Antony Varghese plays Jacob, an executive in a finance company. Tinu explains, “The action thriller is based in Kottayam and written by my Kottayam based friend Dileep Kurian. It has Vinayakan and Chemban Vinod in prominent roles. The film’s plot unravels in the Kottayam sub-jail. It is about Jacob whose life changes in one night and his life in between— surviving odds.”
Lijo acts as a lawyer in the film and is also the co-producer. Tinu has a lot of respect for Lijo and that is evident in his words, “I have worked with him right from City of God to Ee Ma Yau —so some influence of his style of filmmaking is natural. I have worked with a lot of directors but Lijo’s approach to pre-production and post-production is very different. He saw the preview of the film and liked it —so were Chemban and B. Unnikrishnan who are the co-producers.”
The dedication and hard work of the actors left Tinu astounded. He recalls an incident during the shoot, “Vinayakan once reported to the shoot running a 100 degree fever. The shoot was at night and he was required to be dragged through muddy water. After two takes, I felt the third take was ok but he was not satisfied. So we took around 6-7 takes which went on till 4 am in the morning but he never once complained.”
Tinu himself is a man who has nurtured a love for cinema from a young age. He reveals, “I was so fascinated with films that I would be seen more in cinema theatres than in school.” “I went around for many long years looking for a chance to become a director, hearing stories and holding discussions but nothing came out of it. So I started assisting established directors. It is only now that I got a chance to turn independent.”
