Sasidhar Chavali is all set to make his directorial debut with the upcoming film Mr. King. In a recent interaction with the media, the debutant shares some interesting insights about the film.
Amartya Smaran
Mr. King, which is going to be released on February 24, is about a man who goes out of his way to safeguard his self-respect. Director Sasidhar Chavali, in his recent interaction with the media, touted the film as a youthful family entertainer.
The film stars Sharan Kumar (Vijayanirmala’s grandson and son of actor Naresh’s cousin Rajkumar), Yashvika Nishkala, and Urvi Singh in the leading roles. The film is produced by B.N.Rao of the Hanvika Creation Banner and the music is scored by Mani Sharma.
Sasidhar Chavali started out in the film industry as an assistant director for a film titled Naa Ishtam(2012). Later, he worked in the editing department for S.S. Rajamouli’s magnum opus, Bahubali: The Beginning. He had also worked with Virinchi Varma, who directed Majnu(2016). Now, with all that impressive body of work, he’s ready to test his luck with Mr. King.
What’s the story all about? “This is about the journey of a boy with good character. He’s not capable of making mistakes and he stands up for what he believes,” informed the debutant.
The director likens the protagonist’s characteristics to that of Kamal Haasan from Aakali Rajyam but he also says that the character is not as loud. However, he went ahead and let us in on Mr. King’s character, “He’s the kind of a guy who’s not burdened by situations around him– like Pawan Kalyan Garu in Jalsa! Also, how would it be if there is such a character in DDLJ’s love story? He’s someone with great goals in life and works on creating a pollution-free aircraft. The one who has a good personality is a king and that’s the justification I’d give for why we named the film, Mr. King.”
Casting a new face always poses a challenge. There are many directors like Shekar Kammula, Teja, Ravi Babu, RGV(Ram Gopal Varma), and Tharun Bhascker, who prefer working with newbies. Not because they think it’s cool to cast new faces but because it makes more sense to the world that they had meticulously created.
The capper here is that there’s no pressure of catering to the fans of a certain star. “Sharan Kumar just seemed apt for the part. He’s a new face and doesn’t have any image and I thought it’d be easy to work with him. The first 30 minutes or so, the audience is going to look at the film thinking there’s someone new, but once the pace sets in, they’ll watch the film,” explained Sasidhar speaking of his casting choice.
It was clear from the interaction that Sasidhar strategically made this film to woo a certain demographic. “Family and youth audiences will relate to this film,” said Sasidhar.Not just that, he went on to confidently say that the audience would hoot for some of the scenes in the second half, “In the second half, there are scenes that will make the youth whistle and cheer. Vennala Kishore’s comedy is hilarious. There has been an excellent response from the screenings so far.”
There are a handful of producers who really care about the output of a film. The ones who genuinely feel that a story can create an impact push the envelope and help directors achieve their vision. We wouldn’t have the Bahubali or the RRR or Vikram if producers just made films to make cash-in on somebody’s dream of telling a good story.
The people who backed these films deeply cared about the product as much as the creators. Thus, it is absolutely essential to have the backing of a daring producer who is willing to go the extra mile and Sasidhar has been lucky that way.
“Producer B.N.Rao Garu provided everything needed for the film without compromising,” stated the Mr. King director adding, “Producer BN Rao liked the story very much.There are also father-daughter emotions. The climax touches everyone. I have not seen whether it is a small movie or a big movie. B.N. Rao Garu helped me realise my idea and make a good film.”
Citing his influences, Sasidhar ended, “K. Vishwanath Garu, Mani Ratnam Garu, and Trivikram Garu have influenced me a lot. I have a few stories with youthful mass elements ready. I will talk about them after Mr. King releases.”
