A Film Should Have A Soul - Jeyam Ravi

Jeyam Ravi is on cloud nine post the success of Peraanmai. He has been receiving rave reviews about his performance as Dhruvan, the tribal forest officer, a far cry from his usual chocolate boy image. Going on a strict diet for one year and learning archery and undergoing training for the role, Ravi has worked hard to get the right look for the film. Speaking to Top 10 Cinema he reveals how the project has changed his life..How does it feel to be receive such kudos for your performance?It feels great. But it was all team work. I have many people to thank. Producers Ayngaran arranged funds for the Satellite and space work and were staunchly supporting us for one and half years. The five heroines left other films to work in this one and went through a grueling drill for it. Director Jananathan taught me so much during the making of this film. Associate director Kalyan is someone I will never forget. I am doing a film with him soon.How has Peraanmai affected you as a person?In order to be remembered by the people, a film should have a soul in it. I could feel this after I did Peraanmai. From now on, any character I do will have more depth and I will try to make it memorable for the people.Has your image changed now from the lover boy one?Yes, earlier I was stuck in the lover boy mode and with my kind of acting. But being directed by Jananathan sir has changed all that. He has taught me so much about myself that I didn’t believe I had in me before this film. Breaking the romantic image without a love interest in the film added respect for the character of Dhruvan who is man bound by duty.Did you do any reading like your character in the film?I did read some of those books to portray my character convincingly. Mainly I went by my director’s words. He explained everything to me. He has a universal brain that knows about almost everything!