Tharun Moorthy: People said I was being arrogant by casting Lukman as the lead in Saudi Vellakka

While it was a given that the makers of Thallumaala and its lead actor Tovino Thomas will be lauded for their work in the movie, the film also gave space for some natural talents. Lukman Avaran, who played the character of the protagonist’s best friend, was arguably the one who garnered the most applause in the film’s climax action sequence.

Lukman’s first major role was in last year’s Operation Java, which was directed by Tharun Moorthy. The filmmaker took to his social networking page on Friday to express his delight that the actor has been appreciated by the audience, while also stating the feedback that he had received from certain people in the industry when he cast Lukman as the lead actor of his second venture Saudi Vellakka.

“Unda, Operation Java and Thallumaala have not just moulded an actor, it has given wings to the dreams of a group of people who aspire to be actors,” wrote the director, on his social media post.

The director said before they collaborated for Operation Java, he had met Lukman only at film auditions they used to give together. He said he doesn’t what made him cast Lukman as one of the central characters in his debut film, but when it became a success and he roped in the actor again for his second directorial Saudi Velakka, a lot of people had complained that it was his arrogance.

“I have only this to tell them: It’s not my arrogance, it’s my pride… to be able to find faces who are right for the character, to be able to work with them and to see their progress… because cinema is not just business for us, it’s also art,” wrote the filmmaker.

Tharun also wrote that actors such as Binu Pappu, Gokulan, Ramya Suresh, Nilja, Dhanya, Riya Saira, Vincy Aloshius and Sujith Shankar are people with unparalleled life experiences and this is the reason they surprise the audience onscreen.