No Filter: Kollywood seems to be in awe of art director Umesh Kumar’s creativity

Years ago, while standing under the blazing sun giving out pamphlets, I never thought I would accomplish something in my life,” said Umesh Kumar, one of the most successful event managers in the city. It’s very humbling when you hear a story like that and for everyone reading this story; yes anything is possible. 

Umesh is also a successful art director in films and his latest movie Irumbu Thirai seems to be headed for 50 days at the box office (a rarity in this Netflix era). In his 30s with a successful career in events, that he thoroughly enjoyed, Umesh wanted more and with the support of his family, he succeeded. Many tried to dissuade him saying cinema is a different medium and he has a successful venture and why does he want to get into this? His answer was, “Because I can and it’s my passion.” 

It’s never late to try something else and be successful at it. We have enough examples like author JK Rowling, Alan Rickman, Jon Hamm and now closer home, we have Umesh Kumar. 

He tells me, “In my second film, Tri sha Illana Nayanthara , I pulled off a song shoot in Rs 2 lakhs and everyone took notice. After that, I was offered five films and I took them up. Initially, I didn’t know how to choose films and accepted everything that came my way. When the films I was a part off didn’t do well at the box office, I took it personally. 

After seeking advice from cinematographer George C Williams, I started listening to my instincts and selected films carefully. I met Vishal sir and Mithran and was blown away after listening to Irumbu Thirai ’s story. 

The film needed to be shot on sets and I took up that challenge. I watch a lot of international cinema and wanted to bring that standard of art direction to my work. Vishal is a very supportive producer. 

Throughout the film shoot, he would jokingly say that Irumbu Thirai is a showcase for George (cinematographer) and me. I want people to understand the importance of an art director’s role in bringing a director’s vision to life along with the cinematographer. 

Technicians here refer to European, Korean and American cinema. But I want people all over the world to use Tamil cinema as a reference and it’s very much possible. There is so much talent here.” 

As we discuss life and cinema, the current crop of film reviewers came up in our conversation. One of his pet peeves is that reviewers don’t talk about art direction or director’s unless big names like Sabu Cyril and Thotta Tharani are involved in a project. 

“A well-planned art direction could elevate a film. The audience would be surprised when they find out that most scenes are shot on sets and not on locations. An art director starts his work months or sometimes years ahead before a movie goes into production. They work tirelessly on multiple locations to ensure seamless shooting schedules. Even when all the actors and artists are done for the day, they stay back to set up for the next day or dismantle the sets,” he says. 

I think his MBA and event management experience come in handy here. Umesh hopes to work with actor Vijay and directors like Mani Ratnam and Gautham Vasudev Menon.