‘I’ve never had so many script meetings in my life for a single film,’ says Dulquer, who feared 'Kaantha' would slip away

Actor Dulquer Salmaan opened up extensively about his experience working on the film Kaantha, describing it as a once-in-a-lifetime project in his career. Speaking at the trailer launch, he said that he had never participated in so many script meetings for any other film and admitted he had feared losing a project he had long desired. He credited director Selva for immersing him completely in the storytelling process.

“I first heard the story of Kaantha in 2019 around 3 pm. I had a dinner engagement later that evening, so I assumed the narration would be over by 6 pm. But time stretched on — 6, 7, 7:30 — until Selva said, ‘No worries, I’ll finish the first half in 10 minutes.’ I couldn’t believe it would take four to five hours just for the first half. But I was so immersed in the story; I loved it that much. Selva even brought speakers with him, so listening to the narration felt like watching a film,” Dulquer recalled.

The production of Kaantha extended over six years. Dulquer praised Selva’s ability to write in any direction and explained their collaborative process: “If we asked to tweak a part of the script, he would write extensively in that section before moving on. Then we would discuss how to bring it back to the story we originally loved. We’ve been doing this for four to five years. I’ve never had so many script meetings in my life for a single film. Each Kaantha meeting lasts at least five hours. We’ve had 10–12 such meetings, totaling roughly 50, 60, 70, even 80 hours of story discussion. I was genuinely afraid this film I had wanted so badly might slip away.”

Dulquer also spoke highly of Samuthirakani, whom he fondly referred to as ‘Ayya.’ “Kani sir approaches cinema with both life and love. On set, he’s the most energetic and passionate person. He talks about history, cinema, politics — everything — when we sit together. When Rana and I produced the film, we had such a bond that we could even argue with each other, but our ultimate goal was to make the best film possible,” he said.

The role of Kumari, the film’s heroine, was played by Bhagyashri Borse, who was selected after a six-month search. Selva insisted that the character should feel like a fresh discovery for audiences.

Dulquer emphasised that Kaantha is not an ordinary story or film: “This film has its own destiny. It decides who is needed, when shooting should begin, and when it should release. There’s even a conversation in the film about this. It’s a once-in-a-career opportunity. The film is not being dubbed into four or five languages — only Tamil and Telugu — because the story is culturally more familiar in these languages. Don’t think of it as an art film; it has plenty of drama and is highly commercial. When it releases on November 14, it will be an unforgettable experience.”

Set against the backdrop of 1950s Madras, Dulquer plays the role of T. K. Mahadevan. The film also stars Samuthirakani, Bhagyashri Borse, and Rana Daggubati in key roles.

Expectations soar as the film is set to hit theatres.