Veteran filmmaker Shaji Kailas looks back on the making of ‘Red Chillies’ and shares why he believes the 2009 action thriller failed to connect with audiences. Despite generating good hype before its release, the film did not perform as expected at the box office.Speaking in a recent interview with Club FM, the director revealed that the original concept of ‘Red Chillies’ was very different from what was seen on screen. According to him, the screenplay underwent major changes after Mohanlal became available for a longer shooting schedule.Shaji Kailas admitted that those last minute changes changed the foundation of the story and ultimately affected the overall impact of the film.
The team only asked for Mohanlal’s voice
Explaining how the project progressed, Shaji Kailas revealed that Mohanlal’s character, OMR, was initially designed as a limited role that could only be heard in phone conversations.Recalling the incident, the director said, “OMR was originally a character meant to appear for just two days. In fact, she was supposed to exist only through telephone conversations. That’s how initially we approached Lal. We only asked for his voice. But Lal said, ‘No, I’ll come in person. Let’s do it.’However, we told him that two days would be enough. At that time, one of his shoots in China was postponed. Then he told us, ‘I’m free.'”Mohanlal’s unexpected schedule change gave the filmmakers an opportunity to expand his role, but it also led to major changes in the screenplay.
How the story changes during production
Shaji Kailas explained that Mohanlal eventually spent nine days on the project instead of the originally planned two-day commitment.He said, “I immediately informed Sajan. Somehow we managed to extend it and ended up shooting with him for nine days. We went to him just asking for his voice, but instead, he spent nine days with us. Naturally, the character had to change. In the process, we broke the foundation of the story.According to the director, the screenplay had to be revised immediately to make full use of Mohanlal’s unexpected availability.
Shaji Kailas says that the rewrites ruined the film
The director admitted that expanding Mohanlal’s role resulted in rushed writing, which affected the final product.He added, “We had to use his availability because he gave us the dates. So we added more scenes for Lal. These scenes were written in a hurry, and it affected the entire film.”‘Red Chillies’, released in 2009, featured Mohanlal in the lead role and was mounted on a grand scale. However, despite high expectations, it failed to achieve the commercial success many expected.Meanwhile, Shaji Kailas’ latest directorial venture, ‘Varavu’, has been released in theatres. The film stars Joju George in the lead role.