Light of the fireflies : director Vimal Chandran on ‘Ray', Sushin Shyam's debut indie track

New Indian Express

2 days ago

Chandran also credits Kerala's cultural heritage as an inspiration. 'I wanted to showcase the beauty of Kerala and the importance of acceptance and inclusion. I have already experimented with it. The alien's bright colours were inspired by Kerala art forms like the Theyyam, while the outfits drew from the traditional attire of African tribes and the Japanese kimono. It's a mix of many things,' he explains.
Moreover, the video's aesthetic adds a '90s touch to it. 'I took a retro-futuristic approach to the theme because Sushin and I are from the '90s,' he says. 'The car in the story, the TV holder, walkman, even I took a retro-futuristic approach to the Alien Spaceship,' he explains. Creating Ray in around nine months was a labour of love and collaborative work for Chandran. 'Sushin had planned to do a different concept, in English, initially. When I heard the song, I felt like it lacked nativity. So, I wanted to do it in our way, and Sushin was very supportive,' he says.
There are several instances of cultural exchange leading to the video's core message of inclusion, Chandran explains, 'The visuals which plays in the ending is actually from the Malayalam movie Njan Gandharvan (1991), in which the lead mythical character is from the outside world, and the fireflies have an ET [Extra-Terrestrial] (1982) reference. So it's a mix of the directors – Spielberg and Padmarajan coming together at that point. A cultural exchange of art happens there.'
The video ends with fireflies as a metaphor. 'The fireflies coming out of the TV and how they share the light shows that they have become one family now, living together under one roof,' he concludes.