Vetri Maaran to shut down his production banner after ‘Bad Girl’: ‘Being a producer is taxing work’

Acclaimed filmmaker and producer Vetri Maaran announced on Monday (September 1) that the upcoming film Bad Girl, directed by Varsha Bharath, will be the last film produced under his Grass Root Film Company banner. The director blamed the immense pressure he faced as a producer on Bad Girl and Manushi— two films that were embroiled in controversies — for the decision.

At the press meet of Bad Girl in Chennai, Vetri said, “Being a producer is taxing work. Being a director is easy — we will be creative, we will ask the producers to do what’s necessary, and the film will be made. With direction, the responsibility is just about doing our job. But as a producer, we need to take stock of even the comments that are posted under the teaser of our film. In fact, while each of them was talking here, I was wondering, ‘Okay, what would they comment on this?’ Because all of this will directly affect the business a film makes. So that becomes a big pressure.”

Stating that Bad Girl got a U/A 16+ certificate after going through a revising committee screening, the producer asserted that it isn’t the film that many critics of the film’s teaser have painted it as. “There were a lot of hypersensitive comments to the teaser, but this isn’t that kind of film. It is the censor board’s responsibility to adjudicate who can watch a film, and they have given a U/A 16+ certificate for the film.”

“Manushi, on the other hand, went through one censor screening and two revising committee screenings. Then it went to court. So, being a producer proves to be quite difficult for people like myself — not a big producer, but a small producer who procures finance and makes films. So, we have decided that Bad Girl will be Grass Root Film Company’s final film, after which we will be shutting shop,” added Vetri Maaran.

Bad Girl, which is set to release in theatres this week, was embroiled in a controversy after the release of its teaser. Many, like director Mohan G, alleged that the film promotes underage drinking and misrepresents a particular community. Some comments called the film as a negative influence on teenage girls.

Meanwhile, Manushi, directed by Gopi Nainar and starring Andrea Jeremiah, was denied a censor certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification, after which Vetri Maaran moved courts. The Madras High Court wondered how the CBFC could deny certification to Manushi without specifying the objectionable scenes, visuals, dialogues, music, or other content that would need to be edited before public screening.

Notably, on August 29, the Madras HC hailed Manushi as a “film that masterfully explores the dark underbelly of power,” and directed the CBFC to issue it a censor certificate after the makers made certain modifications and removal of portions suggested by the court.

The news about the shutdown of Grass Root Film Company has come as a shock to many. The banner, which started its journey with 2013’s Udhayam NH4, has produced countless films that have earned worldwide acclaim. Apart from the National Award-winning films Kaaka Muttai and Visaranai, the banner also produced titles such as Vada Chennai, Kodi, Viduthalai and Garudan.