Chennai, Oct 2: Jason Sanjay, son of actor-turned-politician and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, said on Friday that there was no hidden meaning behind a character name in his directorial debut, ‘Sigma’.
One of the characters in the film is named Manik Baashha, a reference to the role played by Superstar Rajinikanth in the film ‘Baashha’.
Speaking to reporters after the premiere of the film, Jason said the name carried no subtext.
“We didn’t think about it that deeply. Because that character is a fan of ‘Baashha’, we randomly gave that name. And we did it thinking that if anyone notices, there would be a bit of humour in it. Other than that, we didn’t think much about it,” Jason said.
The release of ‘Sigma’—which took more than three years to reach theatres despite being backed by one of Kollywood’s biggest production houses, Lyca Productions—marks a deeply personal milestone for Jason, one he appears to have navigated with a mix of familial support and notable absences.
While his London-based mother (Sangkeetha Sornalingam) and sister (Divya Saasha) attended the FDFS, proudly supporting his directorial debut, his father and grandparents stayed away from the media frenzy surrounding the premiere.
Despite his grandfather, veteran director S A Chandrasekhar, not offering him direct suggestions during the film’s production, Jason said he had drawn an important lesson from his grandfather’s enduring legacy.
“I didn’t ask for my grandfather’s suggestions after starting this film. But back in his time, as a director, he achieved two or three releases a year. SAC sir is a very producer-friendly, efficient director who makes films without dragging out costs anywhere. That is a thing we can all learn from,” Jason said. However, despite being the third generation of his family to enter the film industry, Jason was quick to acknowledge that his journey to the director’s chair was neither short nor easy.
“Actually, Lyca trusted me and gave me the opportunity. We started the project in 2023. So, it has been almost three-and-a-half years now. In that three-plus-year process, as I believe everyone knows, there were a lot of hurdles and a lot of struggles,” Jason said.
According to industry sources, ‘Sigma’ was hit by significant scheduling conflicts and release delays, most notably because of a potential box-office clash with his father.
The film was initially expected to hit theatres on July 31. However, the date coincided with the scheduled release of ‘Jana Nayagan’, the much-anticipated final film of Vijay. To avoid the high-profile clash, Lyca Productions postponed ‘Sigma’ to allow audiences to celebrate Vijay’s farewell film first, sources said.
The press interaction shed light on Sanjay’s creative choices, which were shaped in part by his academic background. Having studied filmmaking in the US, where he frequently shot short films with skeletal crews and handled multiple departments himself, Jason said the experience prepared him to take on the role of “captain of the ship” on a large-scale Tamil production.
Jason faced questions about the film’s depiction of drugs, particularly a scene in which a character cultivates a marijuana plant despite having amassed considerable wealth. Rejecting suggestions that the scene glorifies substance abuse, Sanjay said the detail was intended purely as a behavioural trait, reflecting the character’s lifestyle rather than promoting drug use.
Jason emphasised that the film portrays the serious problems faced by characters as a result of the drug trade, a theme underscored by a philosophical fusion remix composed by S S Thaman.
He clarified that the elaborate gambling clubs depicted in the film were entirely fictional creations of his imagination, adding that he was unaware of whether such establishments actually exist locally.
While ‘Sigma’ marks Jason’s debut as a director and the beginning of his journey to establish an identity of his own in Tamil cinema, he has not ruled out a career in acting.
“I can’t say I don’t have an interest in acting… let’s see; it’s definitely not like I will only do direction and nothing else. If an opportunity comes, I will definitely do it,” Jason said.
‘Sigma’ stars Sundeep Kishan, with Faria Abdullah, Raju Sundaram, Anbu Thasan, Yog Japee, Sampath Raj, Kiran Konda and Magalakshmi Sudharsanan in the supporting cast. (PTI)
