Tamil cinema is not new to films based on the relationship between siblings but the actor points out how all films don’t manage to strike an emotional chord with audience. He then narrated the story,” Sasikumar says. Director Saravanan, who is also my good friend, had narrated three scenes from the film to me, and I really liked it. So, while hearing the script, at that particular moment, the script needs to appeal to us in some way. So, why did the actor say yes to Udanpirappe? “Actually, apart from being actors, we are also the first set of audience. So, the people I interact with, the things I encounter and all the experiences become part of my stories,” he observes. Though I moved out of my village to pursue college and despite living in Chennai now, I have continued to have close ties with my village. Starting from Sethu and Subramaniapuram (Sasikumar’s critically acclaimed directorial debut) to Petta, playing authentic rural-based characters has been Sasikumar’s forte.
In a conversation with TNM ahead of the film’s release, Sasikumar spoke about Udanpirappe’s script, experience of working with co-stars, his acting process, playing rural characters, donning the director’s hat and more.