Zooming in on fence sitters
M. L. NARASIMHAM
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Janardan Maharshi reveals that his new filmhas references to the avatars of Vishnu.
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THREE CHEERS Aarti Chabria, Naresh and Gowri Munjal in a still from `Gopi - Goda Meeda Pilli.'
Film-maker Shyam Benegal stated: "One can enjoy a film at various levels. The use of cinematic techniques and skills, for example, to put together something that works well — the ability to use the medium, the language, the grammar of cinema, the way it involves you emotionally, its capacity to make you identify with the characters and situations and its ability to make you enjoy it thoroughly... When the various aesthetic and technical aspects of the audio and visual come together, it has the capacity to create a certain cinematic experience that can be lasting."
Driven by the script
Writer-turned-director Janardan Maharshi believes in this statement of Shyam Benegal. Their genres may differ but the end result of any film-maker's work is to entertain and enlighten. Maharshi is comfortable writing for comedies, but he says among his 42 scripts his favourites are the ones that strike an emotional chord - Maa Nannaki Pelli, Chala Bagundhi and Kanyadaanam. He is now working on a new film, Gopi - Goda Meeda Pilli.
"The moment the concept of Gopi struck me, I thought here is a story that I should direct. I fell in love with the script. Though I wrote the story, screenplay and the dialogues, I entrusted the job of fine-tuning them to six upcoming writers - Srinivas, Nivas, Nagaraju, Bnim, Balaram and Venkateswara Rao. Since that is taken care of, I could totally concentrate on direction," says Maharshi.
The central point of the film is based on the survival instinct of people. "If Lord Vishnu took thousands of years to don dasavataras, today a man does not hesitate to don 20 incarnations in a single day. The Lord donned the avatars to punish the demonic forces, but man changes colours like a chameleon for his selfish needs and deeds. Among all the incarnations of Vishnu, matsya, kurma and varaha stand out. But he is surprised to see man in a new avatar — the marjala or the cat on the wall," smiles Maharshi.
The new avatar
The film opens with Lord Vishnu (Suresh) and his consort Lakshmi Devi (Rambha) scanning the Earth from Vishnuloka to see the progress made by mankind. They zero in on a particular colony and were amused to see Gopi (`Allari' Naresh) in a new incarnation, the marjala. "Naresh is an apt choice for the role as we needed a young actor with an innocent face who can convincingly portray wit and cunningness. Jagapathi Babu plays a crucial role. Gowri Munjal and Aarti Chabria are the heroines and the later is cast in an unconventional role for a heroine. We don't want to reveal her role at this point of time," smiles the young director. Since it is a Janardan Maharshi script, an array of comedians is in the film. "There are also three popular heroes in special roles but you'll get to know them only when the film releases," he smiles.
Not just comedy
On a serious note, he adds, "I don't want to call the film a comedy. It is an entertainer, a complete potboiler with five lilting songs scored by Koti, four action episodes, romance, a perfect blend of emotions and a subtle message. Of course, the film has light hearted banter." He says his unit was bowled over by the huge crowds that attended the audio release function held recently at an open-air stadium in Miryalaguda.
Janardan Maharshi is now in demand in Kannada too. He wrote for two of the recent Kannada hits — Akash starring Puneet Rajkumar and Datta with Darshan. Two more Kannada films written by Maharshi, one with Puneet and the other with Upendra are in the making.
The ace film writer is into literature too. "I have been writing short stories, poems and limericks since college days and published them in various magazines. Vennamuddhalu, a collection of 116 poems is in its tenth edition and the fourth edition of Panchamrutham, a collection of short stories was published recently. My first novel, Gudi, will be released in November alongside my directorial venture, Gopi - Goda Meedha Pilli." He signs off with a plea, `write about my film and not about me.'
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