Chennai
Cut to a decade later, he has turned into a first-time director with his film Lens, and bagged this year’s prestigious Gollapudi Srinivas National Award for the Best Debutant Director. And he still drives his trusted Maruti 800.
Jayaprakash or JP, as he is known to his close circle of friends, has gotten used to his spartan life, a minor inconvenience, which pales when compared to the high of choosing to follow one’s passion. He tells us, “During my stint in the US, I took up a part-time acting course under the aegis of JD Coburn, who I consider my guru. Thanks to him, my perspective on art was completely transformed. And I knew it was impossible for me to continue doing what I considered was a pay-thebills routine. So I took a leap of faith and headed to Chennai to pursue a vocation as an actor.”
But the journey was fraught with hardships as he tells us, “As an artiste in the film industry, I had to make my peace, working in a highly unprofessional environment on many occasions. I did not have any godfathers in the business, which made things a lot harder. Nobody bothers picking up your calls or even returning them. You are made to wait for hours together just for an audition, and if you happen to bag a role, you run around in circles for your payments. I’ve faced it all.”
In 2011, JP decided that to further his career as an actor, he would need to build his repertoire by all means necessary. So, he embarked upon writing a screenplay that he could pitch to a prospective director (who happened to be a friend), and hopefully launch himself in the process. That venture however, did not take off. JP admits that he had even undergone a stint of severe depression for about 2 or 3 months from which he bounced back with renewed hope, after he affirmed to write, direct, produce and act in his next film. He says, “Between 2011 and 2014, I embarked on writing and polishing my screenplay for Lens , which is a hostage drama played out in the dark corners of internet chatrooms.”
It was until nine years after he landed in Chennai, that JP got his very first ‘break’ in acting, portraying the protagonist’s friend in the Ajith-starrer Yennai Arindhaal. The film gave him visibility and JP figured it was best to strike the iron while it was still hot. With a little help from his friend and neighbour Siddharth Vipin, a composer for Tamil films (like Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom and Idharkuthane Aasaipattai Balakumara), JP was able to bring on board the expertise of SR Kathir, the renowned cinematographer famed for his work in films such as Subramaniapuram and Kattradhu Thamizh.
JP says, “As Kathir had other commitments in the pipeline, we had no time to spare and had to kick-off shooting Lens, immediately. To fund the film — I had some property in my hometown in Kerala, which I sold off; my father withdrew funds from his fixed deposit; Siddharth came on board as a co-producer and so did some close friends. We completed the shoot in 30 days while the post production took about a month and a half.”
JP credits his wife Sindhu, who has a producer credit on the film, with being his anchor. “As we had a limited budget, we had to make the most of what was available. We shot a large portion of the film within my house in Chennai. My wife, who I have not been able to take on a proper vacation in the last 10 years, tirelessly stood by me, ensuring that our film unit was fed, and keeping our house in top shape, for the shooting to proceed while my 13-year-old son was in school. But I consider these struggles in filmmaking as one of those things that give me a sense of purpose,” he says.
“Getting the movie made was the easy bit, the hard bit is finding a distributor who will pick our film. So, in a way, my struggles have only started,” signs off JP with a smile.
Visit news.dtnext.in to explore our interactive epaper!
Download the DT Next app for more exciting features!
Click here for iOS
Click here for Android