Young director Prasanth Varma made a highly impressive debut with the film Awe, that portrayed mental health in a never before seen way. He created quite the image for himself right from his first film, and here’s what he had to say about his future:
Your next film is about a virus, could you please tell us what the premise is?
Yeah, my next film is about virus contagion. This genre movie has not been done in Telugu earlier, so I am really looking forward to that. Coming to the premise, I have a plan for it, and am planning to go according to it. I will be releasing the motion poster of the film next week, and through that, I am planning to reveal the story to the audience.
You were supposed to work with Akhil for your next film, what happened to that?
His films were supposed to end by December 2019, after which we were supposed to start filming. However, there were delays in his projects because of which I had to take up this one. I was supposed to do other films with other actors as well, but things took a different turn. So, let’s see.
You are shooting for your upcoming film even during this Coronavirus lockdown, how is the experience?
It is very physically tiring because you have to be wearing a mask all the time, which is not the most comfortable thing to do.
Awe was a blockbuster, but your second film Kalki was a little disappointing. Why do you think it was so?
Basically, Kalki was not my story, I was only hired as the director for the film. I tried my best, along with my team. But ultimately, things took their own turn.
You partially directed the Telugu remake of the Hindi film Queen, That Is Mahalakshmi. Then you said that you didn’t want to be credited for the film. Why did you say so, and why hasn’t the film released yet?
By the time I was approached for the film, most of the shooting was done. I didn’t want to take credit for the film because I did it as a favor to the producer. I’m not really sure why the film hasn’t been released yet.
You also said that you had narrated a story to Chiranjeevi sir, what happened to that?
I had narrated the story before Sye Raa had started shooting. Chiranjeevi sir wanted to do a film quickly before Sye Raa released, and we thought we could do it. However, Sye Raa started filming sooner than expected, and even I had moved on with Awe in the meantime. I am awaiting for a call from Megastar sir.
Any plans of working with a star hero very soon?
I don’t know. When stars are involved, it’s up to them. You have to work with them when they are free, and when they want to work with you. So, I don’t know how things will be, it’s not in my hands.
You also announced Awe 2, so when can we expect the film to start rolling, and will any of the original cast return?
I finished the script of Awe 2 a really long time ago. The initial plan was to make it in Hindi, as some Bollywood producers had approached me. However, that didn’t work out and so I decided to make it in Telugu itself. Somehow, the project has been getting delayed. Coming to the cast, it depends upon the dates of the actors. If their dates are available, then yes, surely. But we’ll have to see once we start rolling Awe 2.
There were a lot of speculations that said things were not right between you and Nani sir? Are they true?
No, not as far as I am concerned. I went to Nani sir’s office to find out about this as soon as I got to know about it. Even he was surprised where these rumors started off from.
What movies are lined up for you after your current one?
There’s Awe 2, and there’s also a love story. Also, there are two projects lined up with big heroes. There are also 2-3 web-series lined up, one of which is for Hotstar. So, depends upon whichever is slated to start first. It also depends upon the situations, especially keeping the ongoing Coronavirus situation in mind. So, whichever materializes first would be my next project.
Who is the one actor you really want to work with?
There are so many actors actually. Mahesh Babu Sir, Nani Sir, Jr. NTR Sir. One thing is, whenever I write any script, my lead character always acts like Mahesh Babu sir, or Nani sir, it’s just the way I write my characters. Your character needs to be a lot more energetic for Jr. NTR Sir, I am planning on something like that as well. So yeah, I would really love to work with them.