Karthi on Kaithi: ‘It’s a new-age action film with a strong emotional core’ - Hindustan Times
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Karthi on Kaithi: ‘It’s a new-age action film with a strong emotional core’

Hindustan Times | ByHaricharan Pudipeddi
Oct 23, 2019 01:24 PM IST

Karthi, who will see his film Kaithi release on Diwali, says he is confident about his film as it is an action film with an emotional core.

In Lokesh Kanagaraj directed Kaithi, Karthi plays a prisoner on the run and it’s a story that unfolds in a single night in the span of four hours. Ahead of the film’s release on Friday, Karthi opened up about the project in a group interaction and he describes it as a “new-age action film” powered by a strong “emotional core”.

Karthi in a scene from Kaithi.
Karthi in a scene from Kaithi.

“I have done films in various genres but this is the first time I have attempted an out-and-out action film. When Lokesh brought this story to me, he said it will be a small film. It’s after I heard the narration that I realized that the film has so much scope for action and it could’ve even been done by Arnold Schwarzenegger. What really differentiates Kaithi from any regular action film is its emotional core. The plot is about a prisoner on the run but it is actually about a father who hasn’t seen his 10-year-old daughter and the obstacles he faces as he sets out to meet her.”

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What sets apart Kaithi from others is its emotional core.
What sets apart Kaithi from others is its emotional core.

Asked if he found playing such a character challenging, Karthi said he didn’t as he has a daughter in real life and that he could relate to the emotion. “Since I’m a father in real life, I could relate to the story very well. I’m very protective of my daughter and I play a character who feels the same way for his daughter. Kaithi offered me a lot of scope for performance apart from being high on action.”

Although he wouldn’t consider it a challenge, Karthi said shooting through the night was a very different experience. “The film is set in a single night. This meant we had to take extra care with lighting. As a team, we worked really hard to ensure the film looked visually appealing. The lighting had to be done in a way that it looks authentic and at the same time not too bright because we were shooting in the night. We treated it like a Hollywood film.”

Karthi says shooting in night was a different experience.
Karthi says shooting in night was a different experience.

Karthi went on to say that Kaithi is a film that will engage from start to finish. “The film is high on thrills. It has action and emotion in right proportion and audience will thoroughly enjoy the experience. The film has a very important message involving the cops. What if the cops decide to be unavailable and not patrol one night? The story unfolds in that particular night and it proves how important is the role of the cops in our lives.”

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Talking about the research that went in to playing his character, Karthi said that he met a few prisoners to understand their mindset. “We met a few prisoners who have been in jail for over 10 years. We wanted to understand how they behave and what goes on in their mind. Initially, when I tried to speak to them, nobody spoke a word. It was after Lokesh met them; they opened up and shared a lot of interesting information about prison life. We used all that information to understand and play my character better.”

On the box-office clash with Vijay’s Bigil on the same day, Karthi said it’s quite common for two big films to release for such a festival. “It’s a big festival and audience would love to head to theatres with family. When they have options to choose from, they’ll decide which film they want to see. Moreover, it’s the content that decides the fate of any film. If audience likes a film, they’ll promote it on their own.”

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