“Now, Americans are watching Tamil films, and people in Tamil Nadu are watching Korean films, and Koreans are watching German films. The world has come together. We have transcended borders.” When asked if the consequences of such rapid globalisation and digitization have affected the dominance of the film industry as a primary form of entertainment, the actor stays resolutely optimistic.
“Cinema has no competition. No matter where you go for entertainment these days, you will all still come back to films at the end of the day. How long can you keep scrolling on your phone, looking at your favourite influencers.” While cinema might have held on to its position as top entertainment, Prashanth makes an incisive comment on how the Tamil film industry has evolved over the years.
“Earlier, the story was the hero. Today, the screenplay is the hero.” The actor goes on to dissect the answer further. “The story, the premise largely defined the success of a film back then. But, now, how the story progresses from one point to another is more vital. For example, if you remake Jeans now, you need to make it racier and relevant to the current times,” he says.
Prashanth further adds that his recent release Andhagan, the Tamil remake of the 2018 Hindi film, Andhadhun, would also make a good example for the aforementioned point. “Andhagan is not just a remake, it’s a remade film,” he jokingly remarks, before getting to his point. “The film is made to meet the sensibilities of our Tamil audience, with a stellar star cast who have had a longstanding relationship with our audience,” says Prashanth.
The actor is no stranger to building a strong relationship with the audience. During the early 2000s, the actor used to travel across the world with several members of the Tamil film industry to host live shows, known as Prashanth Star Nite. “My father and I were pioneers of this idea. We travelled to several countries and I owe my huge fan following in the Tamil diaspora to the Star Nite events that we did.” He further reveals that he has plans to revive Prashanth Star Nite soon.
With an almost academic understanding of the Tamil film industry, born out of decades of experience, one wonders if Prashanth will ever follow his father Thiagarajan’s career path and become a director. He shakes his head with a smile before replying, “I am 110 per cent an actor. Direction is a very big profession and I don’t see myself doing it.” However, the actor says he would love to share screen space with his father, and when asked to define a perfect film for the Prashanth-Thiagarajan duo, he takes a long pause and comes back with a smile.
“I would love to do a film like Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (1989) with my father.” A rollicking adventure where the father comes back from retirement and the father-son duo bond as they travel across the world; one could certainly understand why Prashanth says, “It is my dream movie.”