Shoot at Site: Anurag Kashyap shoots at Chennai metro station with Sundar C

A couple of weeks ago, the metro railway station at Koyambedu was buzzing with activity — even though it was well past midnight. For, the team of Sundar C's upcoming action thriller One 2 One, directed by Thirugnanam, was working at a frenetic pace to shoot some scenes for their film inside the station and on the metro train. The film made headlines for roping in Anurag Kashyap to play the antagonist.The Bollywood filmmaker is returning to Tamil films four years after he played a deadly villain in Imaikaa Nodigal. With Thirugnanam and cinematographer SK Bhoopathy Karthik extremely busy during the two days of the shoot, we caught up with the filmmaker over the phone to speak about the film and the shoot. “Sundar C plays an assistant general manager in a bank. The villain wants something from the bank and tries to get it through the hero by creating trouble for him. Whether the hero succumbs to the villain's demands or succeeds forms the plot,” says Thirugnanam, who had previously helmed the Trisha-starrer Paramapatham Vilayattu.
I like shooting in trains because 90 per cent of the films that were shot on trains have gone on to become hits. I hope the film will join the list. Though it might be great to shoot on trains, from a production perspective, it is a nightmare. But they have managed to get all the permissions and shot efficiently. Working with Anurag has been a fantastic experience. We have been sharing the experiences we have had on the films we have directed. Even though it is Thirugananam’s second film, you will see his many years of experience in the industry in this film.
– Sundar C, hero

We shot a sequence in which my character follows the protagonist around. It’s been a great experience shooting for the film — very quick and flexible. I’m looking forward to the film.
– Anurag Kashyap, villain

The scene is the lead to the climax, which will be a tug of war between the protagonist and the antagonist. Sundar C's character will try to discover the identity of the man who has been creating problems for him and come to the metro station to discover who it is. However, with the trains passing by frequently, whether he manages to discover who Anurag is or not will create suspense in this scene. We shot at the metro for two days, and it was a very good experience. It’s a great location to shoot in and after seeing the first shot, even Sundar sir remarked that the frame looks good wherever you placed the camera. We shot the portions involving both the actors on the first day as Anurag sir had to leave later that day, and shot the sequences involving Sundar sir alone the next day.
— Thirugnanam, director

I am playing a Father in the film. Sundar C sir is one of my favourite directors and I’m glad to be sharing screen space with him and Anurag Kashyap sir.
– Chaams, supporting actor