Even before the film has started to roll, veteran Malayalam filmmaker Kamal knows that ‘Aami’, based on the life of writer Kamala Das aka Kamala Surayya -his next celluloid venture- is sure to run into controversies. And he is geared up for the same.
"Vidya Balan will be playing the central role in 'Aami', which tells the tale of the life and times of the acclaimed writer and poet Madhavikutty alias Kamala Surayya," Kamal told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday.
She was known as Aami to her near and dear ones and hence, Kamal did not have to think twice about what would constitute the movie’s title.
Kamal who has completed three decades in the Malayalam film industry has himself written the script and is all set to direct it too.
"I know very well that there are going to be controversies with respect to the film. It tells the life story of a popular writer, as I see and interpret it. There could very well be differences of opinion and I am ready to face it," said Kamal, who was recently appointed as the Chairman of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy.
The first schedule of the film will be shot in Kerala from September 25 onwards and is expected to wind up by November 5. The subsequent schedules will later be shot in Mumbai and Delhi after a short break.
The award-winning and controversial writer had passed away at the age of 75 in 2009. Her decision to convert to Islam in 1999 had raised many eyebrows at that time.
Following her death in 2009 at Pune, her body was brought to Thiruvananthapuram and buried at the Palayam Juma Masjid located in the heart of the capital city.