None could have handled the massive project Endhiran (also referred to as Enthiran and The Robot) better than Shankar. The difficulty in handling it is not just because it is a big project and public expectations are high about its grandeur, but also because of the complexity of the plot and the simultaneous participation of Aishwarya Rai in Mani Rathnam’s bilingual.
Director Shankar had started planning for Endhiran almost a year before he began filming. He held several brainstorming sessions with the film’s technicians, including cameraman Rathnakumar. He created several alternate schedules to be followed when Aishwarya Rai would be busy with Mani Rathnam’s film.
Since the film is science fiction, a genre still in its nascent state in Kollywood, Shankar wants to leave an everlasting impression through Endhiran. To make it the forerunner of science fiction movies of Kollywood, he worked meticulously on the screenplay and the scenes.
In a recent interview, Rathnakumar revealed that he and Shankar planned the scenes, the lighting and props needed, shooting spots, etc., about 9 months before starting the film.
Shankar also got in touch with designer Manish Malhotra and others for the costumes well ahead of the Machu Picchu shoot, since the song shot there would be an important highlight of the film.
Shankar had another problem – keeping his project secret. The ace director was totally disappointed when photographs of the Machu Picchu shoot leaked on the internet. He wanted to keep it a secret until the last possible moment, but some insider played spoilsport. But after that leak, he tightened the security by employing 40 specialized security personnel who now allow crew members only after frisking them thoroughly to ensure they did not carry a camera; even mobile phones are not allowed on the shoot.
With these stringent measures and his improvisation skills, Shankar successfully held shoots in Chennai secretively. Insiders say the vehicles carrying the shooting paraphernalia would be hidden or parked well away from the shooting spot, so that no one would even get an inkling about the shooting.
With all this detailed planning and improvisation plus the involvement of Hollywood bigwigs such as Stan Winston Studios (for animatronics), it looks like the final product will be one great masterpiece and as Shankar hopes, Enthiran will be the forerunner for science fiction movies in Kollywood.
Courtesy: galatta.com
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