Cinematographer Manoj Paramahamsa is the man of the hour as appreciation for his impressive work in 'Thalapathy' Vijay's Leo directed by leading Tamil filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj continues to be the talk of the town. With the mass action drama turning out to be a staggering box office success grossing 461+ crores in seven days in worldwide collections, the acclaimed cameraman recently sat down for an exclusive interview with Galatta to share his filming experiences, while also opening up on the much-talked-about unrealized project titled Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru with Vijay in the lead role and under the direction of Gautham Vasudev Menon.
Ever since Gautham Menon was cast in Vijay's Leo, there has been chatter on social media regarding whether they both would come together and reviveYohan: Adhyayam Ondru. Revealing that he played an instrumental role in the film almost happening, Manoj Paramahamsa explained, "When we were shooting the 'Asku Laska' song in Nanban in Spain, Vijay sir inquired about Gautham Menon and I told him that he's a superb filmmaker and that one must have faith in him. He'll take us into a completely different world and make you feel steady based on what you like. He then asked me if a meeting could be arranged and I told him that we'll have a discussion about it. I immediately called up Gautham Menon sir and informed him that Vijay sir is showing interest in a collaboration. I told him that he would like a full script since that the practice he follows."
Manoj Paramahamsa further stated, "When we returned to Chennai, a meeting was arranged between the two and a process was underway. Everything went healthily and an announcement was made. Gautham Menon sir shared a line about the film with Vijay sir and said that he'll get it developed fully. After 5-6 months, when I was shooting for a film called Poovarasam Peepee in Pollachi, the script narration took place. After their discussion, I suddenly received a phone call from Vijay. During the call, he said, 'There's not a single Tamil dialogue in the film. He has written the dialogue completely in English. The Tamil dialogues are coming only in voiceover. His narration is terrific, but I feel that it's too heavy for me. I'm afraid whether I can adapt to what he requires and deliver.' "
Continuing with his explanation about Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru, Manoj Paramahamsa said, "I once again called up Gautham Menon sir and told him that he should have written the script in a manner that he would like. He explained that he wrote the script in a flow and could not change it for him. 'It'll be as it is, but I'll write it all over again,' he said." Manoj added, "My biggest gripe with Gautham sir is that when we began Dhruva Natchathiram again, it had a premise similar to Yohan. Dhruva Natchathiram had a lot more foul language and many other aspects, and I told him that this is what Vijay sir wanted, and asked him why didn't he do this at the time instead."
Watch Leo cinematographer Manoj Paramahamsa talk about Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru in the video below:
