Y. Sunita Chowdhary
Puri Jagan’s associate director Chavan has made a movie during the lockdown and it is a crime thriller. Titled Nalugurilo Narayana, it is about four thugs involved in four different crimes, who when bump into a bigger crime, get involved with that. Speaking to Klapboardpost.com, Chavan says, “I have worked with Puri Jagan as an associate from Mehbooba to Fighter. I have also done a short film called Aarna and it fetched a good response. There will be two newcomers and there will be two established artists in this film which is a comic thriller and will have dark shades. Since I found time in this lockdown, I wrapped up this movie soon. Once Fighter resumes, I’ll go there, that is forty percent done.”
According to Chavan, many films are being shot for OTT platforms and RGV has 16 films being shot in Goa. The duration of the film is anywhere between twenty to ninety minutes. Many production houses have already begun and atleast six films are being shot by each production house. By October, atleast fifty to sixty OTT films will be ready. Such films enjoy an easy release and there is absolutely no need to spend crores; All that is required is a poster release in the social media. Press meets, jukebox and other paraphernalia can be avoided. This is shot in 20 to 25 days.
Chavan further says, “There is a lot of demand and also supply for the OTT films. This is the right moment for aspiring directors, short film directors and associate directors to try their luck. Once theatres open, people will move there. The experience of the big screen is altogether different. Right now, we have nothing, so we have no option other than watching on the streaming platforms. The moment theatres open, it will be like a Kumbh mela. All those who worked for OTT films, i.e the freshers in the technical department as well as the cast, will have a lot of opportunity when mainstream films get made. We saw a lot of talent on Instagram, on Youtube and picked my team from there. I met so many people, filtered and took them. Having said that, we can’t take all for all departments. They need experience, we can’t take more than 20 percent because it is a risk and also we need to ensure quality.”
The director even lists out the plus points of roping in freshers, they work on a minimum budget, they are at our beck and call and they give their hundered percent for the project. The passion is evident in the performance and output. Hyderabad has a huge market of filmmakers, it is unnecessary for our producers to scout talent from different cities. To be frank, one can make a Hollywood quality film with our people, we only need to catch the right people and train them, extract the work for them. “Lock down has given a lot of people an identity, every person is getting two films okayed and their films are being streamed on different platforms. Since one month everyone is busy and has plenty of work. I only hope when theatres open, both OTT and mainstream film continue to flourish simultaneously,” he adds.
On a remark by Meera Chopra that the content being offered to artistes is sub standard and the emphasis is just producing films, he says, “That isn’t right always. The market for Telugu films is growing and each person has a perspective. We shouldn’t read scripts, we should hear them. If you read a Bahubali, it won’t get into your head, you should hear the narration. Good or bad, listen to the script for ten minutes and decide. We might reject it but others might like it. Platforms should have rotation and they need ready made films. Even if it is slightly good, they will buy it. They need feeding. Some work out and some don’t in this process.” Finally, on the title of his film Nalugurilo Narayana, it is picked from Puri Jagan’s musings on the podcast. He had used the word in one of his episodes and Chavan liked it and also found it apt..
