Baasha
Baasha (Tamil, 1994)
Jul 24th
A landmark film of my career. For many, it was also a cult film. It was the first of its kind, made in a non-linear narrative screenplay. You might notice certain films, even today, are made in similar format. You would perhaps notice that most heroes in South India would have done a role in Baasha format. The film also had Nagma as the heroine playing the role of Priya.
For Superstar Rajnikant and myself though, it was a hat-trick. Annamalai, Veera and now Baasha.
The story revolves around an auto driver Manickam with a dark history, as Baasha, the most feared don in the underworld of Mumbai. It had a gripping screenplay and a brilliant performance from the super star.
When somebody asked me, how did you make such a great film, I quoted Ramesh Sipppy on his film Sholay, “Films like Sholay are not made, it happens.” Very true!