The film is an absolute visual treat, gathering experiences from all over the country and presenting in the form of a narrative which has never been experienced before in Malayalam cinema. We spoke to the director of Namaste India  and got some interesting insights about the film

Text Credits: Shibul Pavithran 

Namaste India takes you on an epic ride. The movie is shot across exotic touristic locations like Agra, Punjab, Jaipur, Himachal Pradesh, certain parts of Kerala, and Rameswaram. There are around 150 new faces from all over the country working in this movie.

R Ajay, the director of the film, believes that one does not need to spend a lot of money for making a good film; rather just focusing on a good idea and elements of twist can make a movie interesting. He always had a desire to do a movie which can reach out to a lot of people. Ajay has travelled for many years to come across a subject which motivates him. He along with his team travelled on the long route towards North India and had amazing experiences by which he was inspired to do a movie on the same. He gives a special thanks to his producer Jossy Kanjirapally, who showed the courage to allow his team to shoot all across India and for believing in the team, cameraman Rahul Menon, and editor Babu Ratnam. He firmly believes that the film will be a stepping stone in Malayalam cinema.

How did you land up in films?

I was always fascinated with films from a very young age. I did a course in graphic designing just so that someday it could be beneficial to my dream of working for films. Even if by designing a poster for movies, if I could be a part of the cinema world, I would have been satisfied. I also wished to study in good institutes in Pune and others, but due to some issues at home, I couldn’t. I managed to do small time jobs for cinema, like design and other related works while I was working for a company in Ernakulam. From there, I made many stories and scripts on my own for cinema so that I could jump ahead in the field of. And for the very same reason, I have worked in Ernakulam for ten years and spoke to many people regarding my ideas. I used to think that we have to convince a lot of people to get our films rolling, but with my experience I realised that the only thing needed is to take that step forward. The rest happens by itself.

Have you assisted or worked with any directors earlier?

Yes, I have worked as an assistant with Shaji Kailas for the film Madhirashi which has Jayaram in the lead role. The shooting lasted for 45 days and that was the first time in my life that I was experiencing cinema from a closer distance. I got an opportunity to understand how a director works and behaves, and I got a kind of foundation of how I would like to take forward my dream as director and how I would like my first movie to be like.

Why Namaste India?

The first thing that struck my mind while doing a movie with newcomers was the title of the film. We travelled extensively throughout India and learned a lot throughout the country. Till the time the movie reaches its climax and in accordance to the entire script, we named the movie Namaste India. And if you watch the film, you will definitely understand why we call it Namaste India, and why people leave the country saying Namaste. Most of the films that go on to the international realm like Slumdog Millionaire, show India as a poor country. But we desired to show the richness of India, whether it is to do with its scenic beauty or just the excellent traditions and culture. Our movie travels through that abundance of tradition and it’s an attempt to show the world how well-endowed India is.

How was your experience, shifting from short films to full-fledged Malayalam movie?

The first short film that I did is called 6 to 60. The movie is based on social crises involving abuse of little children, mistreating old people and many other aspects which show that a child aged six years to an old person aged 60 years both are having troubles surviving in the current state of affairs in our country. The film was appreciated a lot and that gave me the confidence to pursue the field further. Last Onam, I did a video called Onam Ponthiruvonam and received a good response on Youtube. And in 2007, I did a short film called Nonstop on handy cam for Malayala Manorama and received an award for the best short film. So these three are my experiences with film or filming before directing a full movie that gave me the foundation.

Why is travel the theme of the movie?

When I did a bit of research, I found out that Indian films actually don’t have many genre-specific films, as opposed to English movies which are mostly genre based. And from those genres, the entire world starts adapting and creating their own versions, like Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction gave birth to a new genre in itself. I wanted to do something which is not been covered before or categorised. There are few good travel movies from world cinema. One such good movie is ,. It’s one of my personal favourites and I wanted to do something on those lines. So I started travelling to get inspired, to write a script like that and I am grateful that I have received so much from India in return.  Before starting with Apple, Steve Jobs is said to have visited the Himalayas. It is also said that Steve was the guy who convinced Mark Zuckerberg to visit India, before he started Facebook. I can understand that vibe because in Himachal, it’s like Facebook only, it’s like a community of people from around the world and they are very attached to each other.

Tell us about the actor and the actress of the movie?

We have three main characters in the film: First one is Vivek Gopan, he does TV serials in Malayalam and is adored by many people. For one whole year he worked with us, and his character in the movie is of a Yoddha from 500 BC, for which he worked out and got into shape for the role. The second important character is ‘Rohit’ played by Vishnu Nambiar. He is a guy who is travelling in search of musical instruments from different parts of India. And the leading lady is a Girl from Venezuela in the movie played by Neha Anand.

Vishnu is someone with great energy and vibrations which I really liked and I had seen him in dub smash before. I have known Vivek for some time and he is a close friend of our producer, Jossy. His role is a bit challenging but he has done it beautifully. Neha is a  pilot by profession and due to her passion for films, quit her job and was modelling and trying for Bollywood films. When I met her and auditioned for the role, I really liked the way she pulled it off. Even though she does not know Malayalam, she is so smart that by actions and expressions, she can place what we are talking about. She was someone who understood her role perfectly and gave me what I was looking for from the character.

I am new film maker and most of my crew is new to the Malayalam film industry, due to which we don’t have a very established network in film fraternity. I really request my beloved Malayali audience to support us and give us a chance to entertain you guys.  Here’s a song from our movie for you all, have a look.