Despite the rejections, the director remains clear that he would not have removed the character of the five-year-old girl from the film. “I had a strong belief the film would not reach completion if we didn’t have the role of the child in the film. Several heroes asked me to do away with that role. But I was very firm and said no to them.” Krishna confesses that he was stuck without a lead actor for a year after Suriya initially turned down the project. “Even Suriya rejected the role after being approached. He also was apprehensive about playing a father on screen. After he said no, I couldn’t find a hero for my film for a year.” However, Jyotika, who was Krishna’s first choice for Kundavi, agreed to play Kundavi upon narration.
When Suriya finally hopped on board, Krishna was relieved. “Suriya and I shared a very good rapport right from when I was an assistant director on the sets of Kaakha Kaakha. All of a sudden, one day I got his call, asking me if I had found a hero for my film. He told me to come to his home to talk. Once I went to his home, he asked me to narrate the entire film to him again. After I finished narrating, he told me he would play the role.”