Exclusive! Ramesh Pisharody has delivered as a performer in No Way Out: Nithin Devidas

Nithin Devidas has been on a journey to become a film director and he has finally achieved it. Training himself to be a director by making short films, the young director has now concocted an emotional thriller starring Ramesh Pisharody. With the comedian in a role different to what he usually does, the expectations for No Way Out have been high ever since its trailer dropped. 

OTTplay caught up with the director who talks about casting Ramesh Pisharody in a stereotype breaking role, preparing for his first feature film and more. 

This is your first feature film, and it will release on April 22. How are you feeling now and what are the expectations?

There are expectations because we have done a good film. But this is a baby step towards my dream. A small film before the things I really want to say with my cinema. But the content in No Way Out and how it has been done is what makes it unique. 

We have seen Ramesh Pisharody as a comedian throughout his career, so what was the process of casting him in a thriller with a role that has to convey a lot of emotions?

The producer called me and suggested casting Ramesh Pisharody and I knew this would be a role that breaks a lot of stereotypes. There is a lot of curiosity about a comedian doing a serious role and this is the USP of the film. 

The trailer hinted at his character going through a number of emotions and Ramesh Pisharody becoming a character actor. So what can we expect from him from No Way Out?

As an audience, you can expect a lot from him as an actor and No Way Out will prove him as an actor in all aesthetics. The movie has an almost single role treatment and this leads us to explore a lot of possibilities. There are also single shots that are three or four minutes with just his face in the frame. So there are no safe shots and as a performer, he had to deliver and I believe he has done it. 

From the trailer, it seemed that the film mentions suicide, a sensitive topic. How did you prepare yourself to handle this topic?

The fact that someone can seem happy and laughing at 6:00 PM and end their life at 6:05 PM, is a surprising thought to me. I wanted to explore and try to understand what happened in those five minutes. I attended an hypnotism class for this as well because I wanted to know where a mind travels in such a situation and what data it collects. From particular words to situations, the trigger is different for each person and this helped me get what I needed for my character. 

For example, when someone stays somewhere for a long time, they feel comfortable, even if it is a dangerous situation. So I needed to find gimmicks to make these situations uncomfortable and my homework helped me in this. 

You have done short films before like Oru Vattom Koodi. How has this helped you in becoming a feature film director?

This may not work out for everyone, but I treat myself as a very bad short filmmaker. I don’t want any of my short films to be a hit, be it the content of how I film it. Because if it does, we don’t understand our mistakes. I used short films just as a training to become a director and to understand my mistakes and learn the trade. I found keynotes about filmmaking from short films and this training has naturally helped me in making a feature film.

Filmmaker Joshiy was there with you for the promotional events in Kochi. Did he see the film and did he have any comments ?

Joshiy sir watched the trailer for the film and had good things to say about it. He said he will catch the film in theaters. 

What are your future projects?

As I said, this is just a baby step for the next ten films I want to make. Hopefully there are nine more movies to follow.