Stage set for a king
SANGEETA
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Art director Sunil Babu and his team will create the ambience for the period film ‘Pazhassi Raja.’
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“The period covered is between 1796 and 1804; our goal is to create an authentic feel to support the script.
‘Pazhassi Raja,’ the magnum opus penned by M.T. Vasudevan Nair, is set in the 17th century and hence requires imagination and creativity of the highest order in terms of design. Perhaps, that is the reason why a substantial
part of the budget allocation is for production design.
Sunil Babu, a proven talent in art direction, is setting the stage for the film. The designer of ‘Ananthabhadram,’ ‘Lakshya’ and ‘Ghajini,’ sees ‘Pazhassi Raja’ as yet another chance to prove his artistic credentials.
Period recreation
Like any other film of the genre, ‘Pazhassi Raja’ calls for a period recreation. And the huge canvas of the narrative brings in unique logistical and intellectual challenges that have to be worked out within the parameters of time, space and finance, says Sunil.
“The period covered is between 1796 and 1804; our goal is to create an authentic feel to support the script. In addition to the sets, we will be working with the costume designer, hair and make-up stylists, CG/VFX artistes and the location manager to create a unified visual appearance,” explains Sunil.
The unit is also attempting to bring in a compositional integrity with the settings, costume, lighting, and movement to create a realistic feel.
“The paradox in recreating history is that however much you try to avoid stylisation, it comes into your work; basically because the past looked different from contemporary reality. The past can come to life only when the research is accompanied by an imaginative vision that recognizes the differences between the past and the present,” explains Sunil. Whatever stylisation occurs during the material production is being toned down; thus Pazhassi Raja is little of gloss and more of reality, he reiterates.
He adds that the the opulence of ‘Vadakkan Veeragadha,’ ‘Vaisali’ or even ‘Perunthanchan’ will be missing in the film. “Pazhassi Raja will be a completely content-centric film with an honest, raw portrayal of reality, obviously very different from its generic predecessors,” he adds.
The designers’ primary source of reference is the script. “And having somebody like MT is an advantage – he himself is a library,” points out Sunil.
The historical references have been taken from William Logan’s ‘Malabar Manual’ and K.K.N. Kurup’s ‘Pazhassi Samara Rekhakal.’
The visual designs have been inspired by 18th century paintings and sketches by employees of the East India Company and travellers. “Those are not professional paintings, but they provide a glimpse of how life was in those days,” says Sunil The research also threw practical difficulties. “That was primarily in terms of portrayal of women. We were forced to adapt. And in terms of archival references, Kerala does not have a formal or authentic source to refer to in matters of costume. So when I make Pazhassi’s palace, I might get a visual reference from some painting that was done years after him. It might give me an idea of how it was. But I cannot rely completely on that, because by the time it is recorded, the structure might have been revised.” The core persons of Sunil’s 15-member creative team includes Kamal Muhammed, a filmmaker, art directors Bava, Manoj Kumar, and Biju and Vaishnavi, a student from NID.
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