SJ Suryah is an actor-filmmaker, who has several hits such as Vaali, Kushi, New and Anbe Aaruyire to his credit. His latest film, Monster, is running to packed houses in Chennai. These are four films that made Suryah what he is today:
Pasamalar (1961)
Will there ever be another Pasamalar?
The MS Viswanathan-composed song ‘Malarnthum Malaratha’ itself is enough to plunge a dagger through the heart.
Be it the way it was shot, or the terrific performances by Sivaji Ganesan and Savitri, the song does something to your soul, and one can’t put it in words. These were memories that lingered with me for a long time.
The mere mention of Pasamalar gives me goosebumps.
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)
It created a sensation when it released.
I became a great admirer of Shah Rukh Khan after watching that movie. It is a cute love story that had great performances by Kajol and SRK. The climax scene, for obvious reasons, is one of my favourites.
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge was one of the films I kept going back to, when I was trying to make inroads into Tamil cinema.
Ladyhawke (1985)
I was doing my graduation at Loyola College when I first watched it.
I was astounded by its concept and cinematography. My instant reaction was: ippadi kooda padam edukalama?
Of course, Ladyhawke might seem mediocre and dated if you watch it today. But it had some great ideas.
In fact, Ladyhawke inspired me to come up with a high-concept film, and that’s how I ended up making New.
Thevar Magan (1992)
I remember watching the first-day first-show and being blown away by its content.
There were no OTT platforms back then, and we didn’t have the luxury to watch it multiple times.
So, every time I visited the theatre, I carried a notepad and took notes because Thevar Magan is perhaps one of the finest scripts in Indian cinema. I’m purely talking in terms of its screenplay.
If I go into the details of character arcs and performances, I would need an hour or two!
As told to Srivatsan S