H Vinoth on Nerkonda Paarvai: Told Ajith sir that I was afraid to direct

Director H Vinoth, who has teamed up with actor Ajith Kumar for upcoming Tamil film Nerkonda Paarvai (2019), has admitted in his latest interview that he was initially afraid to direct this project and had even communicated his concern to the actor.

Nerkonda Paarvai, which is the remake of Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu-starrer Pink (2016), features Ajith in Bachchan's role and Shraddha Srinath taking up the character played by Pannu.

In his interview to Cinema Express.com, Vinoth revealed why he was hesitant to take up a remake so early on in his career.

“I know about Ajith sir fans. I have had a tough journey to build a career, and a mistake could spell disaster. I realised that there could be two issues — how his fans would consume this film and how a cult film that has admirers across the country could be remade by retaining the essence," he said.

"We should first at least understand half of Pink (2016). The challenge was also to find the right cast and crew. I told Ajith sir these issues and that I was afraid to do this film. He told me that he would not pressurize me and told me to concentrate on another script," he continued.

However, Vinoth came home after that meeting and watched Pink (2016) on loop for three days. He realized he couldn’t afford to miss having such a distinguished film to his filmography because it kept him engaged in spite of watching so many times.

“I met Ajith sir again and told him that I will explain the crux as a one-liner and if he is on the same page, then we can go ahead. It's a film about how we see and understand women and how they should be seen and understood. He said that was exactly what he thought as well,” he said.  

The film, which is gearing up for release on 10 August, marks Boney Kapoor’s foray into southern filmdom. Ajith signed the film to honour a promise he made to late Sridevi while working on English Vinglish (2012). Nerkonda Paarvai also features actress Vidya Balan in an important cameo.