'Asked him if we could use his pictures in our film, this is the only thing Vijay Sethupathi said back then'

Mohanlal's blockbuster film Thudarum is continuing its dream run at the box office. A family drama at its core, the film features Prakash Varma — known primarily as an ad film director — in the role of the antagonist. In a recent interview, producer M. Renjith opened up about casting Prakash Varma in the film. He also shared insights into some of the film’s flashback sequences.

"Thudarum wasn't made on a massive budget. When we first approached Prakash Varma for the villain's role, he was hesitant to take up the role, mainly because he would be performing opposite stalwarts like Mohanlal and Shobana. He told me that his presence might make things difficult for everyone. But we brought him on board to enhance the film's appeal. We did a test video with Prakash Varma and sent it to Mohanlal. Lalettan was amazed by it," he said.

"Lalettan is someone who pays attention to every detail. He lives with a clear sense of reality and rarely has conflicts with anyone. Even if we joke about certain things, he never takes offence. We used some pictures of Tamil actor Vijay Sethupathi in the flashback portions of the film. If it had been some other director, he might have opted for someone like Prabhu or Sarathkumar. The use of Vijay Sethupathi was a stroke of directorial brilliance," Renjith said.

"Vijay Sethupathi is very close to us. When we talked to him about using some of his pictures in the film, he simply said, 'I haven't had a chance to act alongside Mohanlal sir yet. At least let my photograph act with him.' Even if this film gets remade, no other actor can truly replace Mohanlal," Renjith added.