Director Halitha Shameem and composer Khatija Rahman interview: On creating ‘Minmini’ and its soundscape
Having finally realised her dream project, filmmaker Halitha Shameem speaks about working with the same actors both as children and adults, while composer Khatija Rahman discusses what went behind composing the soul-stirring music of the film
(Originally published in The Hindu on August 7, 2024)
Imagine holding onto a dream for nearly a decade, wielding unshakable trust in yourself, and giving your everything to see the other end of the tunnel. To realise her sophomore directorial Minmini, filmmaker Halitha Shameem has been on one such journey. The passion project that began a little after the release of her debut film, Poovarasam Peepee, was intentionally put on hold for the child actors of the film — Esther Anil, Praveen Kishore and Gaurav Kaalai — to grow older and reprise the adult versions of their characters. In 2022, Halitha shot the second half of the film, and now Minmini is finally all set to fly.
In all these years, even when she made other films like Sillu Karupatti, Aelay, or Loners (a segment in Putham Pudhu Kaalai Vidiyaadhaa), Halitha hasn’t missed a chance to speak about Minmini. However, with the art form and audiences evolving continuously, it is natural for a moment of self-doubt to creep in, isn’t it?
That wasn’t the case with Minmini, says Halitha “I could never detach myself from this story. Every time I finished another film and came back to watch the footage, it kept exciting me and that’s because of the emotion behind it; sure, the way we make films might evolve but the emotions never change and the story always gave me that high,” she says, adding that she was conscious not to tamper the soul of her work even when she shot the second half after almost six years. “Maybe I would have added a couple of ideas, like the COVID-19 pandemic-induced lifestyle changes, but I never got insecure.”
Read the full interview here: