Face 2 Face

Karthik Subbaraj, who is directing the next Rajinikanth film, talks about being a “social media generation” director, making short films and learning from them. He talks about his writing process and how he writes complex screenplays like Jigarthanda and Iraivi. He discusses the the layering of characters, the staging of shots. He talks about how the climax of Pizza helped him form the rest of the narrative (when people asked him to make it like Chandramukhi), and about his twists. He talks about the challenges of making a silent film like Mercury, with Prabhu Dheva. (And about Kamal Haasan’s silent film, Pesum Padam/Pushpak.) He talks about social responsibility and being an urban filmmaker. He talks about his Tarantino fandom, and his involvement in making music (with Santhosh Narayanan). He talks about his Dhanush film, where he wants an antagonist of the stature of Al Pacino or Robert De Niro. He speaks of his love for Baba and Lingaa, and abut classic Thalaivar films like Mullum Malarum and Nallavanukku

RJ Balaji, fresh off the success of LKG, explains the original intention behind making such a film adding how the team managed to complete the political satire without deleting a single scene.

Vijay Deverakonda, the star of NOTA, talks about being called the biggest star in south Indian cinema. After Pelli Choopulu, Arjun Reddy and Geetha Govindam, he assesses his position, his female fan base, and the perceived change in his attitude and behaviour. He talks about the dynastic system of the Telugu film industry and the issue of releasing NOTA alongside NTR Jr's Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava. He talks about his schooldays in Puttaparthi, the culture shock of Hyderabad, his theatre training and destiny. He talks about his favourite Tamil films (starring Rajinikanth, Karthi, Surya) and whether he will do 'mass' movies.

Actor/Producer #VijayAntony (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23VijayAntony) talks to Baradwaj Rangan about his upcoming film #Kolaigaran (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Kolaigaran) , he also talks about his journey in the film industry, why he started producing films,how he chooses his film scripts, his unique titles, his creative process as anactor/composer & more.

Vetri Maaran talks about Vada Chennai, and how it differs from other gangster movies set in North Madras. It was originally a 5-1/2 hour cut. How did he reduce it to a manageable size? What is the reason for the long gestation periods between his films (Polladhavan, Aadukalam, Visaranai, and Vada Chennai), and what are his learnings from each one of them? He discusses the possibility that he is a changed man after Visaranai, having now acquired the rights to the book, Shoes of the Dead, which is about farmer suicides. He talks about his improvisatory methods, and why dubbing is such an important part of his films. When a film drags on for as long as Vada Chennai, is there a danger of doubting the material or getting bored with it? Is there the temptation to keep tweaking or changing it? And what about Dhanush? When an actor and director who have a high level of comfort, who are also friends, is there a danger that you know someone too well and therefore might not be able to surprise each other anymore? And tw

Actor #TaapseePannu (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23TaapseePannu) talks to Baradwaj Rangan about her upcoming film #GameOver (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23GameOver) and what made her choose to accept the film, she talks about director #Vetrimaaran (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Vetrimaaran) and how he used her naivety in aadukalam to his advantage. She also talks about how she likes to be convinced to do a scene in a particular way.

Suhasini, in this interview with Baradwaj Rangan, talks about how Mahendran told her to absorb cinema as a maker, the legendary director's friendship with Ilaiyaraaja, how close he is to Rajinikanth, why Mahendran didn't work with Balu Mahendra after Mullum Malarum and how he had approached her dad to cast her in a movie.

Ahead of #Ranarangam (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Ranarangam) ’s release-  #SudheerVarma (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23SudheerVarma) talks to Baradwaj Rangan about how he got into films, his favourite directors, the difference between copying and getting inspired, who Ram Gopal Varma is to him and his love for world cinema.

Director S U Arun Kumar talks to Baradwaj Rangan about his transition from an engineer to a filmmaker. He also talks about his upcoming film #Sindhubaadh (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Sindhubaadh) , his rapport with actor #VijaySethupathi (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23VijaySethupathi) and more.

Actor #ShrutiHaasan (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23ShrutiHaasan) talks to Baradwaj Rangan about creating independent music, how acting helped her make better music. She also talks about how her father #KamalHaasan (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23KamalHaasan) wanted her to become an actor.

Sruthi Hariharan talks to Baradwaj Rangan about how she started her career as a background dancer before falling in love with the process of filmmaking. She talks about how rare it is for an actress in the Kannada film industry to speak her mind and about using art to drive change.The acclaimed actress also talks about the MeToo movement, explaining her stand on the ongoing controversy and the difference between ‘bad touch’ and a harmless one. Calling her fight a need of the hour and something she needs to do for her future daughter, Sruthi also explains the emotional, physical and financial toll of the entire ordeal.

Director #Sasi (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Sasi) talks to Baradwaj Rangan about his latest hit film  #SivappuManjalPachai (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23SivappuManjalPachai) starring #Siddharth (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Siddharth) and #GVPrakashKumar (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23GVPrakashKumar) , how he casts, his working process and more.

Santhosh Narayanan talks about his 25th album, Vada Chennai, directed by Vetri Maaran. He speaks of the song, Kaarkuzhal kadavaiye, and why he wanted it in this album. He talks about his sound and why it came about, and how he goes about composing a song. He speaks of how ideologically inclined directors like Pa Ranjith and Mari Selvaraj have shaped his work and his life. He speaks of the gaana song's resurgence and how his gaana songs are different from those by Deva. He talks about Karuppi, from Pariyerum Perumal, and his rural songs versus those by Ilayaraja and others. He speaks of his love for MS Viswanathan. He discusses how he composes background music, and his pet cause of substance abuse.He talks about how he chooses a genre, and why he works with a particular set of singers. He name-drops Attakathi, Pizza, Soodhu Kavvum, Jigarthanda, Iraivi... He concludes with thoughts on his new open-door policy about interviews and whether it will last.

Box office trackers and Influencers #RameshBala (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23RameshBala) and #KaushikLM (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23KaushikLM) talk to Baradwaj Rangan about how easy it is to track a movie's collection in Chennai, the difference between production and distribution of films, why a producer will not know the original collection a movie has made, and how they work and when they work. They also talk about how disorganised the TamilNadu box office report is and how difficult it is for them to track the overall run of a movie.

In this two-part interview, Rajiv Menon talks about being a dominant-caste filmmaker tackling a Dalit narrative in Sarvam Thaala Mayam, his relationship with the "musically modest" AR Rahman, and why the cinematography in Mani Ratnam's "Bombay" is a milestone in his career.

In this two-part interview, Rajiv Menon talks about being a dominant-caste filmmaker tackling a Dalit narrative in Sarvam Thaala Mayam, his relationship with the "musically modest" AR Rahman, and why the cinematography in Mani Ratnam's "Bombay" is a milestone in his career.

On the 20th anniversary of #KandukondainKandukondain (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23KandukondainKandukondain) , cinematographer and director #RajivMenon (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23RajivMenon) talks about working with #Mammootty (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Mammootty) and #AjithKumar (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23AjithKumar) , #Ash (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Ash) and #Tabu (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Tabu) , #ARRahman (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23ARRahman) and more.

Director #PriyaKrishnaswamy (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23PriyaKrishnaswamy) talks to Baradwaj Rangan about her film #Baaram (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23Baaram) , the real life incidents the film deals with and more.

Ahead of #OththaSeruppu (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23OththaSeruppu) ’s release Director and actor #RParthiban (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23RParthiban) talks to @BaradwajRangan about his early films and also about his love for the technicians who work in abstracts. He also talks about his experiences from working with his Guru #KBhagyaraj (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23KBhagyaraj) . He also talks about how he wants to technically improve with every film and how producers shut doors when you give a single flop.

Nithilan Swaminathan (Kurangu Bommai) and Lokesh Kanagaraj (Maanagaram) talk about being new-gen directors. The challenges. How they learnt their craft. About compromises and finding producers like SR Prabhu (Potential Studios). About reading books to make good cinema. Watching world cinema, Kamal Haasan films, Martin Scorese films, Truffaut and De Sica's films. How they can make a new Thalapathy with Vijay/Ajith, because only if stars act in new-gen films can this become a movement.