A story that unravels as the lead actors are stuck in a traffic jam on a flyover has the potential to lend itself to a good film; doesn’t it? Writer Rajasimha Tadinada was once stuck in a jam for two hours, on a flyover, which left him thinking about those around him and the stories that could emerge from the situation.
This was in 2007. He pitched the idea to a number of producers who were sceptical about its viability.
Sundeep Kishan, who heard the story, took it on himself to find a producer, roped in his uncle and cinematographer Chota K. Naidu, and waived his fee. “I am here for the love of cinema. I can say with conviction that this is the film I am most proud of, till date. It’s not easy to write or shoot a film like this and if I get to be a part of such a good project, why not make some sacrifice?” he says.
Around 10 per cent of the film was shot on real location and the rest was on a flyover set at Annapurna Studios. On many days, at least 600 junior artistes were involved. “Usually computer graphics come into play to make something look out of the world. In this case we used CG to make things appear real, which isn’t easy. People can quickly point out mistakes if we don’t recreate a real-life like situation. A lot of time was spent in pre-production. Prior planning helped us shoot without wasting time,” says the actor.
The film stars Nithya Menen, Ravi Kishan, Prudhvi and Ali. Sundeep calls Okka Ammayi Thappa an intense, intriguing and entertaining love story. “Rajasimha has seen life the hard way and his experiences, both from cinema and outside of it, show in his writing. He explains complex things in a simple manner. In his dialogues for Rudhramadevi , he sums up Gona Ganna Reddy’s character with the line ‘ Nenu Telugu baasha lekka; aada unta… eeda unta .’ I liked the way he wrote Okka Ammayi Thappa , lightening tense situations with humour,” explains Sundeep, who calls this film an experience to give into on the large screen.
During the shooting, he recalls how he and Nithya were referred to by their screen names. Sundeep didn’t venture out during the shoot days to stay in the zone required of the character, not wanting to let his attention waver. “Days later when I drove past the flyover near Hitec, I couldn’t help but think of the film.” he says.
The last time he had taken a risk to back a project that others didn’t think highly of, was during Venkatadri Express . “My belief in that film paid off, I hope this one does too,” he adds.
Sundeep has two Tamil films coming up — the science fiction Maayavan by C.V. Kumar co-starring Lavanya Tripathi, Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Maanagaram co-starring Regina Cassandra — apart from director Krishna Vamsi’s next, Nakshatram . Ask him if he’s playing a cop in Krishna Vamsi’s film and the actor clams up, not wanting to get into the bad books of the filmmaker.
