When Daniel Caltagirone’s agent informed him that an Indian director wanted to talk to him, the British actor thought it was his chance to work on a Bollywood film. “I thought it would be singing and dancing. I couldn’t wait,” he recalls. But the director in question was Pa Ranjith, and the film, Thangalaanco-starring Tamil star Chiyan Vikram.
Before meeting Ranjith, Caltagirone, who appeared in The Pianist (2002) and Tomb Raider (2018), watched Sarpatta Parambarai (2021). “Ranjith is an incredible social commentator. I liked his style of filmmaking, how he used the camera and pushed his actors. His style reminded me of Spike Lee, there is a little element of [Quentin] Tarantino too,” he says.
In a Zoom call, Ranjith narrated the idea of the period actioner and his character of a British police officer. Caltagirone admits that he had doubts at first, but they were dispelled as soon as he heard the narration. “I thought I would be portrayed as a typical English character who plays a bad guy and then disappears. But Ranjith wanted me to be Vikram’s co-star. I didn’t know who Vikram was at the time, but I assumed he was a big Indian star. Ranjith said, ‘I don’t want to do a black-and-white film with you. This will be a fleshed-out character.’”
Thangalaan was also an opportunity for Caltagirone to understand the caste system that prevails in India. “Ranjith was talking to me about breaking the last chains of the caste system. We were talking about how subtle it is in the West and that’s why we have no right to say that the West is ahead of others. It would be easier for Ranjith to become a rich filmmaker who makes luxury films, but he has always made films about people who lead difficult lives.”
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