"Tamiletchumy" is a local Tamil series which is currently gripping viewers at 9pm on Mondays to Thursdays on Astro Vaanavil (CH 201).

The show, which is also available for stream on Astro Go and on demand, tells the story of three married women - Letchu (played by Jasmine Michael), Tamil (Hemaji), and Amy (Moon Nila), who are also long-time best friends, juggling their respective family lives and work commitments in Kuala Lumpur.

But do you know is inspired by the series' director Dr Vimala Perumal's own interactions with her family and friends?

Having observed such happenings, Vimala decided to present it in an engaging format with which viewers can relate to, she told Astro in a recent interview.

Renowned for her previous feature film projects such as "Vedigundu Passange", and "Vilaiyaatu Pasangge" with her husband cum actor Denes Kumar, this is Vimala's first attempt at making both a series and subject on female empowerment. Denes is also the producer of Tamiletchumy.

"Sharing my outlook and perspectibve on female-centric topics, specifically women empowerment, had always been my dream and I'm glad to have finally achieved it.

"I hope this series will be food for though for the viewers. Tamiletchumy brings the real life situations that happen in our daily lives to the screen, where the audience can relate most to the characters and scenarios depicted within," she said.

On the challenges faced in the making of the series, Vimala cited the longer scripts, artistes' commitments, and eleventh hour changes, among others.

"I did not plan on making a series but it happened because based on a research by producer Denes Kumar and I, there were numerous issues that had to be addressed, and a movie would have only cramped all these issues together in two hours.

"A series, meanwhile, would be more effective in delivering clearer messafes about the issues we want to put forward," said Vimala, adding that a filmmaker should always be willing to experiment with various methods to deliver messages to the audience, rather than sticking to one medium only.

According to Vimala, the Movement Control Order (MCO) enforced to contain the COVID-19 outbreak did not really dampen the series' making, thanks to technology, and the production team's diligency.

Vimala welcomed constructive feedback from the audience on the series, so that she can improve on her future ventures.

On her future projects, Vimala revealed that she has two feature films in the pipeline - details of which will be announced in the near future.

Asked for advice to aspiring filmmakers, Vimala said one has to work hard and be open to learn new things.

"Filmmaking is all about story telling and in order to convey a good story, one should listen and learn beforehand."

She further thanked Astro providing greater space and opportunities for local talents to shine, of late.

Astro also spoke to Jasmine Michael, who says her character Letchu in the series is about 40 percent similar to her in real life. Hemaji and Moon Nila said they found closer similaries between their reel and real versions.

Like Vimala, the actors also said that the MCO did not impact the project much as the shooting had wrapped up by the time the order kicked in on March 18, 2020.

They also thanked Astro for providing a crucial platform for local artistes to show their talents and skills.

Asked about their next venture, Jasmine said she has completed a few movies, which will be released soon. As for Hemaji, she has an upcoming feature film called "Kaadhal Enbathu Saabama" and a telemovie called "Ramba Menaga Oorvasi". Besides, some TV shows she has hosted will also be aired soon.

Moon Nila, meanwhile, has three upcoming movies, and three theatrical films, coming up.

Asked on the key for one to succeed in the film industry, the actresses said one needs to be hardworking, patient, dedicated, and passionate about what they do, and do not give up easily.