I was asked to stay away from the house as it is haunted

Sandalwood gets set to welcome yet another young debutant director in the form of Sumanth, also known as Raghavendra to a few. At 24, the youngster is gearing up for the release of his horror film Naani, which stars talented actors like Suhasini Maniratnam and Jai Jagadish, in addition to youngsters Manish Chandra and Priyanka Rao, as well as Baby Suhasini playing a crucial role. Over a chat, Sumanth tells us what went into the making of this film ' which, incidentally, is said to be based on actual events.

How did you come across the story of Naani, considering it is based on real-life events?
I had been a co-producer for an award-winning children's film along with Ramesh Kumar Jain. He is from Rajasthan. Once, when we were catching up over dinner, he mentioned this story about a house in Gujarat that was said to be haunted. He spoke of how the people around this house continue to hear noises and feel a supernatural presence. The house had been locked up for 17 years before I thought it could make for a good story and I decided to venture out there. We took permission of the few remaining relatives of the family that used to live there; they live abroad now. I also had taken a few people along with me to visit the house first, but before I reached, all of them opted out. People warned me to stay away from the house as they believe it is still haunted. I went in alone, armed with just a camera. The massive structure is eerie. It was filled with over five lakh bats, and the stench' you need to be there to believe how bad it was. The floors were filled with over a feet of dust and even had snakes inside. There are over 30 rooms in this house, all lying abandoned. The only thing that still remains in this house is a photograph of Naani, hanging on a wall. It was scary, so much that I took ill with fright on my return to Bengaluru. But since I had recorded my first time at this house, I have been able to include shots of that into the movie as well.

Why would one explore a story that gives them the creeps?
I enjoy movies of all genres. I was planning to work on a comedy film first, but this story came calling out to me. It has been challenging, considering there have been unexplainable incidents that have affected the cast and crew members too. Even the members of the censor board were spooked while watching the film, they stopped the screening and asked us to reduce the background score to be able to watch the rest of the film. The fact that the film is based on a true story made me want to work on it. It also offered the opportunity to explore the concept of test tube babies on the Kannada screen for the first time.
Was it easy to have the cast members in place in such a situation?
Actually, Suhasini madam had initially refused as she was extremely busy for six months. I insisted she take a look at the script and then take a call. I had mailed it to her. And after she read it, she mailed back to say she would make time for this film. She has given a tremendous performance, and I would say that it is one of hers as well as Jai Jagadish's best work till date.