These days Vaazha , the plantain plant, is the talk of tinseltown. Vaazha: Biopic of a Billion Boys , a slice-of-life drama revolving around the shenanigans of a group of boys, has brought in crowds to the theatres and cheer to its director Anand Menen and his team. The title is inspired by an adage in Malayalam which says it is better to grow a plantain tree ( vaazha ) instead of a person considered good-for-nothing.
The film is about underachievers Ajo Thomas ( Siju Sunny ), Vishnu (Amith Mohan Rajeswari), Moosa (Joemon Jyothir), Abdul Kalam (Anuraj OB) and Vivek Anand (Anu Anshid), who are not in the good books of their families or teachers right from when they are kids. The coming-of-age narrative is about the challenges they face in various stages of their lives till their early 20s and their relationships with their fathers. A scene from Vaazha : Biopic of a Billion Boys | Photo Credit:SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT Anand, who debuted as a director with the feel-good movie Gauthamante Radham in 2020, says that Vaazha worked for the audience because of its relatability.
“We have presented the points of view of both the youngsters and their parents with humour and a dash of satire. We have incorporated several nostalgic elements as well that which the audience enjoyed.” However, Anand calls it the “unplanned movie of my career.
” He goes on, “There has been a gap after my first film. That’s because I am someone who is not easily satisfied with scripts. I keep reworking the stories that come to me and I was almost ready to direct my next when Vipin chettan [filmmaker Vipin Das] gave me the script of Vaazha ,” says Anand.
Vipin has written the story, screenplay and dialogues of the movie. Director Anand Menen (right) with filmmaker Vipin Das, who is the writer and one of the producers of Vaazha : Biopic of a Billion Boys | Photo Credit:SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT Anand says that when he became friends with Vipin in 2018, the latter already had the story of Vaazha with him. “He had named it Vaazha then and had planned it as his second movie [after Mudhugauv ].
But as he went on to direct other projects such as Anthakshari, Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Hey and Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil , Vaazha was put on the backburner,” Anand points out. The director stresses that several scenes in the movie might have happened in real life to many people. “Vipin chettan has had such experiences or might have heard it from others.
Even I could relate to some of the scenes.” Siju Sunny and Meenakshi Unnikrishnan in a scene from Vaazha : Biopic of a Billion Boys | Photo Credit:SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT The director adds that the film would not have happened had it not been for the confidence showed by the producers on the cast. “The protagonists are comparatively fresh faces in Malayalam cinema and generally producers are wary of investing in them.
But Vaazha materialised because of a bunch of people who believed in the project and the actors,” he says. The film has five producers — Vipin Das, Harris Desom, PB Anish, Adarsh Narayan, Icon Studios. Anand adds, “We all wanted freshness in the movie for which we needed these actors.
They were placed in a space that was new for them and the audience.” Promotion poster of Vaazha: Biopic of a Billion Boys | Photo Credit:SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT He says it helped that the actors are from his circle of friends. “I have known Jomon, Amith and Anuraj for many years now.
Jomon had done a role in my first movie. Amith chettan was a part of the short film, Magneto , in which I had acted. Anuraj and I started our careers together.
Love for cinema has kept us together and that brought in an innate chemistry amongst us,” he says. It was through Vipin that he came to know Siju, Anu and Saaf Bros, who plays BC Vishwam, the studious kid making him the archrival of the gang. Anand mentions that there was minimal interference from Vipin.
“We started the shoot with the song sequence in college and he was there throughout the shoot. Other than that he was seldom on the set because he was busy with Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil . So, we coordinated the shoot mostly through video calls or voice notes.
” Director Anand Menen in a candid shot with the actors of Vaazha : Biopic of a Billion Boys | Photo Credit:SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT He mentions that the sequences in the climax — one of the higlights of the movie — are the only “properly written” portions in the script. “Rest were all dialogues and situations. Sometimes Vipin chettan would write on the spot as well.
The actors were given the freedom to improvise. Of course, when the performances had to be controlled, we did that as well.” Anand points out that he always takes suggestions from his team.
“The first song, ‘Athimanoharam’ has shots suggested by all members of the direction team. Since Vipin chettan is the writer, his suggestions were given priority.” Performances of the bunch of senior actors — Kottayam Nazeer, Noby Marcose, Azeez Nedumangad and Jagadish have come in for a lot of praise.
“Their characters were well defined in the script, including their mannerisms and body language. And they have taken it up a notch with their talent and experience. Time and again they have proved how much underutilised they are in our industry.
” (From left) Amith Mohan Rajeswari, Joemon Jyothir and Siju Sunny in a scene from Vaazha: Biopic of a Billion Boys | Photo Credit:SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT He notes that the young actors created the impact with subtle humour and dialogue delivery. “It was fun watching how they upped the comedy during dubbing.” Songs, blended well with the narrative, are composed by five independent musicians.
“Out of all the tracks, ‘Vaazha’ anthem by Nomadic Voice and ‘Swaha’ featuring Jay Stellar and rap musician Rakz Radiant were part of the movie even before I got the script.” Other composers are Rajat Prakash who has written, composed and sung ‘Athimanoharam’, Parvathish Pradeep (‘Thottavadi’ and ‘Makane’) and Electronic Kili (‘Eyy banane’). Ankith Menon has done the music supervision.
Anand adds that while the film was primarily shot in Irinjalakkuda in Thrissur, the massive plantain plantation is in Chalakkudy. “The plantation is important for the story and it took some time for us to locate one,” he says. Meanwhile, makers have announced sequel to the movie, directed by Savin SA, one of the associates of the first part.
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