He grins and says in gay abandon, ‘Shammi heroyaada… hero’. Appu VK enjoyed Fahadh Faasil’s psychotic Shammi in Kumbalangi Nights so much that the animation artist in him wasted no time in caricaturising the character.
“A bat was the first creature that came to mind... It flies, but is not a bird. Shammi too has that dual personality. Also because bats have always been associated with horror in our films, especially now when they are known to transmit so many deadly diseases,” he says with a laugh.
Shammi from ‘Kumbalangi Nights’ | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
It’s not only Shammi who has been given “stylish caricaturisation” by the artist. He has taken up six more popular villains from Malayalam cinema and has reinterpreted them by associating each role with a particular animal. The re-imagined characters, in their respective costume, are posted on his Facebook page (Appu VK).
The villains in the list are Keerikkadan Jose (Kireedam), Kulappully Appan (Aaram Thamburan), John Honayi (In Harihar Nagar), Appani Ravi (Angamaly Diaries), Rawther (Vietnam Colony), and Swami Amoorthananda (Ekalavyan).
Appu | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
“Each caricature has been developed based on some aspect related to the character. For example, in the case of Keerikkadan Jose (played by Mohan Raj), I took the word ‘keeri’, meaning mongoose, from his name and worked around that. Appani Ravi (Sarath Kumar or Appani Sarath) is associated with pig farms in the film and although he is skinny, in order to bring out the villainy, I connected his image with a wild boar,” explains the 26-year-old.
Rawther from ‘Vietnam Colony’ | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Telugu actor Vijayaranga Raja, who filled the screen with his massive physique as Rawther, has been sketched as a bear. Swami Amoorthananda (Narendra Prasad), the godman with thick hair and beard, running a drug cartel, reminded Appu of a lion-tailed macaque; John Honayi was easy to imagine like a fox.
Among his favourites is Kulappully Appan, the cunning feudal lord essayed with a flourish by Narendra Prasad, picturised as an alligator. Of course, it has that cut across his right eye as well! “I am scared of alligators. Choosing the animal complemented the final fight sequences shot on a river bank. Keerikkadan, the last one I made, is special because I felt I improved myself by then. However, I feel Shammi and Appani Ravi could’ve been better,” he says.
Keerikkadan Jose from ‘Kireedam’ | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
One character he couldn’t include was Mundakkal Sekharan from Devasuram. “By that time I felt bored and wanted to move on to something else,” he chuckles.
He points out that the series is like “a warming-up session” to his future experiments in making caricatures. A native of Attingal, Appu is currently on a “forced break” from his job at Fujian in China following the outbreak of Coronavirus. “I started working on this series in China, did some of it while on the flight back home and finished it at home where I am now quarantined,” says Appu, who finished his course in animation from Toonz Animation in Technopark.
After working with the company, he moved to Dreamworks in Bengaluru before moving to China three years ago to work with Base FX, three-time Emmy Award-winning visual effects and animation company.
The first Hollywood project he has worked on, Wish Dragon, is slated to release in a few months’ time. “For me, animation is a stepping stone to cinema. My ambition is to become a filmmaker,” he signs off.