‘Oh Butterfly,’ a Tamil thriller about secrets and the Butterfly Effect, to release in theatres on March 6

What was the last decently gripping Tamil thriller that you watched at the theatres? If you have to think for a bit to answer that question, you are already stating enough about how badly the Tamil audiences have been craving for a good thriller. And if the trailer of Oh Butterfly is any indication of the film that is awaiting us, our wait might get over soon. Starring Nivedhithaa Sathish, Ciby, Nasser, and Attul among others, the film is set to release in theatres on March 6.

Oh Butterfly is a relationship thriller that follows a newly married couple. “The wife has been hiding a secret from her husband, something she hopes to reveal at the secluded vacation home she takes him to. However, unexpectedly, her ex shows up at the home, and their lives change for good,” reads the logline of the film directed by debutant Vijay Ranganathan.

What has particularly caught the eye about the promotions is the film’s well-cut trailer. Revealing just enough information to pique our interest, the promo evokes the charm of old-school psychological thrillers in Hollywood. “There’s a lot of unexpected stuff happening in the film, and so we obviously wanted to keep them hidden. But we wanted to show the three distinct characters who anchor the film. All respect to the actors who play the leads, they aren’t stars, and so they don’t come carrying an image. So we needed to define their characters in the trailer,” says Vijay. 

The titular butterfly, the director adds, is a character by itself. “And the film also deals with the idea of the Butterfly Effect” — a theory describing how something seemingly insignificant, like a butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil, can cause massive consequences, such as a tornado in Texas — “because in the film, something small alters the lives of the people involved.”

The debutant director has had quite the journey before making the film. Vijay was a graduate in investment banking. “I graduated when I was 23, well before I knew what I wanted to do in life. Then, after working for 12 years as an investment banker, I realised that I wanted to do something in storytelling,” says Vijay, adding that it helped that his parents were huge film buffs. “Then I studied filmmaking at LV Prasad College of Media Studies.”

Shot in Kothagiri, Kodaikanal, and Chennai, Oh Butterfly also stars Lakshmipriyaa Chandramouli and Geetha Kailasam in pivotal roles. With music scored by Vaisakh Somanath, the film has cinematography by Vedaraman Sankaran and editing by Bhuvanesh Manivannan.

Director Vijay Ranganathan also produces the film with Vennky, Anand S Shah, and Nisha Patial under the Anthill Cinema and Palampur Talkies banners. “The learning curve, for me, has been quite steep with Oh Butterfly. Since I have also produced the film, I keep learning something new every day,” adds Vijay.