Sudhanshu Rai transformation as an actor

Actor-director and storyteller Sudhanshu Rai - who is best known for his thriller projects like ‘Chaipatti’, ‘Detective Boomrah’, and ‘Chintaa Mani’ - is now working on a yet-untitled sci-fi feature film set in the heartland of India. The upcoming movie will be helmed by Puneet Sharma, who directed ‘Chintaa Mani’. Dubbed a thriller, the storyline of the new film also has a Bhojpuri flavour. In it, Sudhanshu will be seen sharing screen space with actors like Hiten Tejwani and Sourabh Raaj Jain.

“Our upcoming Hindi feature film is a sci-fi thriller with an unusual storyline. I play the protagonist of the film who takes the story forward, weaves together the various characters as well as two different timeframes. Various subplots and distinct characters are woven together to give time for each character to grow on you. It is for the first time in Hindi cinema that a genre like Science Fiction is being based in the heartland of the country, not merely in terms of landscape and visuals but also the language, the culture and the way people behave and speak in the region. Major portion of the film has been shot at a village near Gorakhpur, and in fact some of the scenes have been created seeking inspiration from the region, people living there and their customs,” shared Sudhanshu Rai. Notably, besides being a filmmaker and an actor, Sudhanshu Rai is also one of the most prominent and renowned storytellers in India.

Describing his working experience in the film he says, "We have been able to bring together a cast that fits the characters just perfectly. The casting of the film was an intense process, with both myself and Director Puneet Sharma finalising each actor after much due diligence. The experience of working with the whole team was quite heartening and a wonderful experience. All the actors, Hiten Tejwani, Sourabh Raaj Jain, Manisha Sharma, Shobhit Sujay, Deepak Wadhwa and Sidharth Banerjee, have done full justice to their roles and you would see it for yourself very soon. Overall, it was a great team work by all actors as well as all other crew members."

When quizzed about whether the film is having theatrical or OTT release he reveals, "We are actually eyeing a theatrical release for our upcoming thriller, but it is quite early to confirm anything about it at this point. Speaking about films performing or not in theatres, I firmly believe that films that are content driven are still doing well on the big screen. Our upcoming film too is completely content driven, so that actually is not a matter of doubt for us. However, a final decision on the release will be taken only after the film is ready for the audience."

Sharing his opinion on the challenges of releasing a film independently and independent makers not getting much recognition he says, "The outlook and long-term visions of a person determines as to what one is working or aspiring for. We cannot evaluate everything solely on the basis of fame, as someone might be pursuing something because it gives them the inner satisfaction they seek or the fun they want to have. Fame for one is really not on our mind. It is the process of storytelling and filmmaking that we enjoy the most, and we intend to keep living it again and again. We will be defined by our content, not fame or any such factor. Since the beginning of our journey in the Indian entertainment industry, first as a storyteller and then as a filmmaker, we have been moving forward in a completely independent manner. There is no dependency on any external party or elements, as all the major departments are handled by our core team itself. However, we do plan to work with other major players and banners in the future, and we can assure the audience that each project of ours would always be a notch above and better than the previous one, as it has been since our first production ‘Chaipatti’."

Talking about the prominence regional cinema is getting these days he tells, "Regional cinema has always had a special place in the hearts of the audience, for they are often more relatable and also believed to be more rooted to reality. If we look at the trend over the past few years, we would see that the line between regional cinema and pan-India cinema has blurred to a significant extent. In fact, some of the biggest blockbusters in the recent past are ones made in regional language and subsequently dubbed for a pan-India release. On the basis of their mass appeal, true to the grassroots treatment and probably a factor of novelty for audience from other regions, such films have done exceedingly well, not only in India but even internationally. If I speak about my personal experience as a filmmaker and storyteller, my most loved and popular work are also connected to the grassroots, with references from traditions and cultures. Whether it was my initial stories like ‘Adhyapak Ram’ and ‘Mangu Chitrakaar’ or my latest ‘PappanBataaGappan’, or for that matter my streaming releases ‘Chaipatti’, ‘Detective Boomrah’ and ‘Chintaa Mani’, you can see a lot of references to our inherent culture, for example, ‘Sitar’, ‘Khadau’, ‘Shlokas’ etc. Even in our upcoming film, you would see a representation of India’s heartland, its culture and traditions."