Vijay Sethupathi and I share a beautiful bond: Mysskin on directing Pisasu 2

Speculations were abuzz that Pisasu 2 was a sequel to Mysskin's 2014 horror film. But, now the director has clarified that his earlier one has no connection with the Andrea Jeremiah-starrer. "Producer Muruganantham of Rockfort Entertainment and I were supposed to collaborate on a different film, which didn't take off. So, he asked if I could do Pisasu 2. I didn't have a story for it, but asked him to give me two weeks to think about it," Mysskin said, adding, "Pisasu was about a father and his daughter, and Pisasu 2 revolves around a mother and her child."

When asked about the treatment of the story, the director said both are different. Then, why retain the same name? "Pisasu was both commercially successful and critically acclaimed. I am not interested in titles. I am simply focused on giving a different experience to the theatre-going crowd."

On working with Andrea Jeremiah, Mysskin said she's an extraordinary actor. "Although I never wrote Pisasu 2 having her in mind, I knew Andrea would be apt. I needed someone tall, and we both worked in Thupparivaalan. I don't think I have ever written such a powerful full-fledged role for a female actor. Her performance will fetch her awards, and I'm sure of it."

Speaking about Vijay Sethupathi's extended cameo in Pisasu 2, Mysskin said, they both share a beautiful bond. "I remember he casually asked me for this story, and a couple of days later, told me he'd want to do a role. I didn't know what to do. I revisited my script, and found a character, which was sketched in a way to accommodate him." And, Mysskin turned that into a tailormade character for Vijay Sethupathi. "When an actor of his stature came on board, the role naturally took a bigger form. But, Vijay Sethupathi followed my instructions, and delivered things that I had just asked for," added Mysskin.

Mysskin revealed what happened with Ilaiyaraaja, and why he didn't want to work with him again. "Sid Sriram sang Unna Nenachu, (Psycho). but Raja sir didn't want him. Instead, he suggested another name. We further had differences of opinion in the choice of lyricist, as well. Things weren't going well between us. Moreover, I think a son can fight with the father!"

How did he rope in Karthik Raja to compose the music for Pisasu 2? "I have known him for a while, but we didn't sync. We had a friendship, but there was no magic factor involved, unlike how it happened with Raja sir. Karthik couldn't be with us, owing to the Covid situation. He has done the score, but I took over. I didn't like some of the tunes, and I had to work on them, myself."

Shot primarily in Tamil, Pisasu 2 will be dubbed and released in three languages—Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam.