There Aren’t Many Vulnerable Police Men in Tamil Cinema: Ashok Selvan

“I feel like I have come a long way. But on the other hand, it also feels like I have just begun,” says Ashok Selvan, as he speaks to Film Companion about completing ten years in Tamil cinema. A decade into cinema, Ashok remarks that his upcoming Por Thozhil has made his dream of playing a cop on screen come true. Directed by Vignesh Raja, the film co-stars Sarathkumar and follows a young cop who is trying to figure out his duties, as he navigates personal fears. 

“I've always wanted to play a police officer. I wanted to do that mass introduction scene and twist my moustache in style.” But the actor also agrees that his character in Por Thozhil does none of these things. “He is someone who asks if all police officers should have moustaches and if they should always be strict. He wants to be approachable, and you will like that.” 

There is no dearth of cop films in Tamil cinema but Ashok asserts that vulnerable police officers are a rarity in Kollywood. “I think we haven't seen many police officers who are vulnerable in Tamil cinema. That is something we focused on. I prepared to make sure I keep the vulnerable side of my character intact throughout the film. When we think of police officers, we often associate them with terms like macho, ideal man, mass and action. But what if he always had a certain fear within him? My character is someone who feels out of his comfort zone and constantly wonders why he is in such a place. But he had to hide that fear. So, it was tricky to play such a character where I should show traces of my vulnerability but also hide my fear.”

Ashok is focusing on expanding his market, whilst not compromising his passion for art and cinema. Trying to find this balance, he also experiments with his script choices. “Por Thozhil is one of the best scripts I have ever read. Sometimes you get the second or third draft and people would make changes after that. But when I received the script of Por Thozil, it was the final draft. It had so much clarity and the film is also technically sound.”

Ashok further adds, “Vignesh had a clear vision and we always discussed dialogues and scenes. There is this one scene in the climax which Vignesh wanted to shoot in a different way. But I thought we could do it in a more realistic fashion. It was a tough process for me and we couldn’t crack it initially. After 4 or 5 takes, I thought I will give up but the next take came out beautifully. That is a moment I will cherish forever.”

Directed by Vignesh Raja, Por Thozhil is slated to hit the screens on June 9.