Kollywood gears up for yet another period drama — ‘Yaathisai’

Dharani Rasendran’s directorial debut revolves around Pandian king Ranadheera Pandian of the 7th Century AD; it’s releasing on 21 April.

ByManigandan KR

Published Apr 11, 2023 | 2:43 PMUpdatedAug 18, 2023 | 3:48 PM

dharani rasendran yaathisai poster

Period films seem to have caught the fancy of Tamil filmmakers, of late. Director Mani Ratnam already created waves with Ponniyin Selvan which is based on the Chola king Raja Raja Cholan.

Even as the second part — Ponniyin Selvan 2 — is set to hit the screens on 28 April, Kollywood is gearing up for yet another period drama titled Yaathisai (The South Side).

Yaathisai’s story, set in the 7th Century AD, revolves around the life of the great Pandian King Ranadheera Pandian. The film is to release on 21 April.

Directed by newcomer Dharani Rasendran, Yaathisai will tell a fictional story set in the period of the great Pandian king Ranadheera Pandian. He was renowned for having fought several battles and not having lost even a single one of them.

Interestingly, Dharani Rasendran’s movie will not look to glorify the kings. Instead, it will present the perspective of those who were crushed by war.

The film has already triggered huge interest amongst the public after its trailer garnered a whopping 6.1 million views on YouTube.

Dharani Rasendran did his research

Although Yaathisai’s story is fictional, director Dharani Rasendran’s unit seems to have done an extensive research to reproduce traditions, habits, practices and belief systems prevailing then.

director Dharani Rasendran yaathisai

Director Dharani Rasendran (second from left) at the promotion of ‘Yaathisai’. (Supplied)

“My film will neither present the story from the perspective of a king nor glorify the kings. It will present political thoughts. People always crave power. They do not want to come to power for the sake of creating a welfare state. It is about their need for authority,” Dharani Rasendran told South First.

Dharani believes that the worst sufferers of war are those who are caught in between.

“When two great empires were at war with each other, several small kingdoms and groups were forced to take sides and join the war. These smaller entities were the ones that suffered the most,” he pointed out.

He noted that when two great empires clash, one must definitely lose. However, the losing empire would still manage to survive because of its size.

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The smaller kingdoms and groups that fought along with the losing side would suffer the most as they would either get wiped out or forced to flee to the deserts or jungles, he explained.

“For instance, when Ranadheera Pandian came to power, he wanted to expand his empire and went to war with Cholas, Cheras and other contemporary kings. When he defeated the Cholas, he overran their lands and pushed them far back. Einars, a small outfit that fought on behalf of the Cholas, suffered heavy losses and had to turn nomads.”

Portrays practices & language of those times

Dharani Rasendran said Yaathisai will feature at least 1,000 Tamil words that were in use in the 7th Century AD and have since been forgotten. The movie will also showcase practices like “Navakandam” which was in vogue during those times.

Navakandam was the name given to a practice where loyal soldiers who wanted to see their king emerge victorious sacrificed themselves in front of a deity.

dharani rasendran pc sreeram

Director Dharani Rasendran with PC Sreeram. (dhararasendran/Twitter)

“The process was extremely painful; the soldiers used to administer eight cuts in various places of their bodies before finally cutting their throats,” Dharani Rasendran elucidated.

Ask him what would be a more apt description of Yaathisai — a war film, a period film or a political drama and he quips: “Although my film has war sequences in it, it will present new political thoughts.”

The director, who had a team of 28 assistant directors to assist him on the project, recreated the life and times in the 7th Century AD by referencing inscriptions on temple pillars in the State.

Dharani Rasendran also used information available in ancient Tamil texts such as “Tholkappiam”, “Puranaanooru” and “Kurunthogai”.

Interestingly, most of the actors in Yaathisai are newcomers except for National Award winner Guru Somasundaram. It is produced by KJ Ganesh.

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Chakravarthy is the music director. Akilesh Kathamuthu is the cinematographer.

The movie features Shakthi Mithran, Seyon, Rajalakshmi, Chandrakumar, Semmalar Annam, Subathra, Samar, Vijay Seyon, S Ruby Beauty, Rajasekar, Vaidehi, Seenu, Sabdhaseelan, Jamaal, Nirmal, Sureshkumar Tamizhselvi, Sathish Nadarajan, Sidhu, Pascal, Samson, Sanjay, and Suji Subha.