Notwithstanding the hype, Katari Veera... has been in the news for all the wrong reasons.
Muniratna (producer) has a comic take on why there are so many hurdles for the film. He says we should have started the shooting for the film on 18th instead of 14th. That aside, I do not even remember the guy (Niranjan Shetty) who claims to have narrated a story to me in 2004. He says he came with (composer) V Manohar to meet me. Frankly, I meet so many people every day that I do not even remember meeting him, let alone hearing a story from him. I never gave the idea of the film to Muniratna. In fact, the story idea of Katari Veera.. is Muniratna’s. He did not write it, but narrated the scenes and the basic premise. He wanted to repeat Mohana’s character from Raktakanneeru, the film to be in a particular shape etc. Then we sat with Janardhan Maharshi and wrote the script. Then, director Suresh Krishna gave the final shape to the script, making suitable changes. I wrote the dialogues finally. Shetty is not a Shah Rukh Khan or a Salman for me to remember him after so many years.
The fight between producers
K Manju and Muniratna over releasing their respective films first was played out as farce. You are the common element in both the films.
It started out as a serious problem, and it was a real fight. But soon everyone involved started enjoying it and the publicity that it was drawing. And both the producers are humorous in their talks. Soon, nobody wanted the problem resolved. There were people, including television channels, which wanted the discussion between the two producers to escalate. I wanted it to stop.
The concept of the film, about a dead man taking on the Gods in heaven, does not even seem novel.
Agreed, the concept is very old. Such stories have been told even before we were born. But this particular approach is our own. How we have presented the sequences, the enjoyment it gives to the audience and 3D effects are what we are banking on. And it is not a sequel to Raktakanneeru. The reference to that film is just a small portion of this film.
3D films have become a Hollywood staple. What can we expect from Katari Veera...
Today, it is not just films. There are 3D television sets and even phones that do not need special glasses. It is the future. For the previous generation, making a film in CinemaScope was the biggest technological leap. Today, 3D technology is setting new standards. I saw Katari Veera.. in 3D and I can tell you it gives you a far better experience than many Hollywood films. The brightness and the colours are much better. Maybe because we are showing grand sets in 3D rather than just graphics or a natural location.
Can theatre infrastructure in Karnataka handle the investment made in 3D films?
Muniratna is investing not just on the film, but also in introducing 3D projection and screening technologies in theatres. He is spending Rs 10-Rs 15 lakh on each theatre that will screen the 3D version of the film. In future, Kannada films that are made in 3D will have a ready-made infrastructure. You can expect more 3D films in Kannada after this. We wanted to shoot the horror film Kalpana in 3D, but had to give up that plan because both the cameras available were being used for Katari Veera.. at that time. Some genres like horror, mythologies and fantasies are best suited for 3D. Avatar provided the impetus for thousands of theatres across the world to adopt 3D technology. Katari Veera... is doing it for Karnataka. Our film-makers have to utilise it.
Is this your costliest film to date?
It has to be. This is the kind of a lavish production aiming at the growth of the Kannada film industry.
The dubbing issue has engulfed Sandalwood recently. Are you in favour or against?
There are many arguments for and against. But when you look at the success of the Kannada version of KBC, you wonder why you need to dub. I feel there should be no opposition to dubbing of animation cartoons and wildlife programmes.
PROMISES GALORE
Producer Muniratna has promised that he would try to formulate a plan where people watching the film in a single screen theatre will not have to pay a deposit for the special glasses. Private security will be arranged in all single-screen theatres to collect the glasses. A list of 170 theatres, including 56 screening the 3D version, has been finalised. There will only be a marginal increase in ticket rates. As announced earlier, there will not be early morning shows when the film releases on May 10. And also expect to see Dr Rajkumar, lyricist and writer Chi Udayshankar and others in graphically created roles in the film.
No comments:
Post a Comment