It is interesting how many Tamil superstars who exhibit flamboyance onscreen are rather reticent in real life. They showcase the sombre side of their persona, making their onscreen transformations all the more impressive. One such star is National Award-winning actor Suriya. In fact, director Karthik Subbaraj thought Suriya would be a very serious person on the sets of their maiden collaboration, Retro. However, he was in for a pleasant surprise.
Talking to Vikatan ahead of the film’s release on May 1, Karthik said, “He is quite a jovial guy in real life. Suriya sir is also a very positive person who exudes a lot of warmth. He ensures everyone is happy and positive on the sets.”
When asked about the surprises that the actor in Suriya sprang up, Karthik Subbaraj narrated an incident during the shoot in Andaman.
“There was a particular scene where we had already gone for a couple of takes, and I asked him if we could do something else. After the scene was canned, we moved on, but Suriya sir came up to me and said he understands that I wanted something else,” said Karthik, adding that Suriya suggested they get back to this scene the next day, and we move on, for now.
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Revealing that it was a night shoot, Karthik shared how the location of the shoot was at least 2 hours away from the Andaman mainland, and they had to travel in a boat and a car to get back to the room. “Next day morning, I received a bunch of videos from Suriya sir, and it was him performing multiple iterations of that scene in front of the mirror. He sent me the options, and asked what was it that I wanted. He was awake the entire night, and rehearsing for that one scene. He just wanted to crack it,” said Karthik, who expressed his admiration for the actor’s determination in getting the scene right.
If this scene showed his perseverance, Karthik Subbaraj spoke about another scene that established Suriya’s talent and understanding of the script. “There was one other scene that I can’t quite elaborate on right now. I wanted a particular emotion to be the crux of that scene, but unfortunately, I wasn’t able to articulate what I wanted. I just informed him that we were canning this scene next, and he just came in with full preparations that he did on his own. When he finished performing, there was complete silence on the sets. They were stunned, and were completely focused on what he was doing. We completed the shot in a single take, and I didn’t even want to go for one more from any other angle either,” said Karthik.
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Elaborating on how Suriya’s passion for cinema is all-encompassing and very infectious, Karthik said, “Right from the way his eyes move to the dialogue delivery and body language, Suriya sir has a firm grasp on everything. He is a pure artiste, and I could feel his passion ring through till the dubbing process. He loves cinema.” The Jigarthanda Double X director also felt that Suriya is only acting in films that test him. “He only wants to do films that are new to him, both as an actor and as a person. He doesn’t want to take anything for granted.”
Backed by Stone Bench Creations and 2D Entertainment, Retro also stars Pooja Hegde, Jayaram, Joju George, Singampuli, and Nassar. With music by Santhosh Narayanan, who is collaborating with Suriya for the first time, the movie will hit screens on May 1 in multiple languages, including Tamil, Hindi and Telugu.
