Nagarjuna: For a hat-trick

Nag gives freedom to technicians and there was so much to learn from him. He surrenders completely to the director. Working with him, I learned how to handle star heroes - Director Veerabhadram.

With his first two films- ‘Ahana Pellanta’ and ‘Poolarangaudu’- reaping in gold at the box-office, director Veerabhadram is hoping to do hat-trick of sorts with his current venture, ‘Bhai’, which sees Superstar Nagarjuna in the title role. “It’s an action-entertainer and the song, especially the title track, has caught the fancy of the actor’s fans. The success of the soundtrack is a sign of things to come”, he says speaking about the film, scheduled to release this Friday.

He shares that he approached Nag while he was still shooting for ‘Shirdi Sai’. “He liked the title ‘Bhai’ and asked me to narrate the story after a week. Upon next meeting, he was impressed with my narration before deciding to produce the film on Annapurna Studios. I am lucky that I could make a film for his banner. Every filmmaker dreams of coming to the studio and learning nuances of filmmaking,” he says and continues, “He liked his characterisation and the one-liners. It took five months to give the script a fine polishing.”

Directing Nag was a memorable experience, he recalls. “As soon as he accepted the film I was on cloud nine for three days (smiles). He is front-runner when it comes to encouraging new talent and he proved it with ‘Bhai’ again. He gives freedom to technicians and there was so much to learn from him. He surrenders completely to the director. Working with him, I learned how to handle star heroes. We wanted to shoot some portions at authentic locales of Old City but he insisted that I erect a set since the atmosphere at natural locations will not be conducive for shooting. The set alone cost us a bomb of Rs 1 crore.”

Refusing to divulge details of the story or for that matter Nag’s three shades in the film, he says, “He has portrayed three shades with zest and also ensured that each shade is different from the other.”

He charmed his way with the romantic sequences besides looking millions bucks, the director reveals about Nag, known for his Casanova image. “His portions with Richa Gangopadhyay show that he is still the king of Tollywood when it comes to romance.”

On the highlights of the film apart from Nag’s role, he insists, “Brahmanandam will be throughout the latter half and is bound to bring the house down with his antics. Sonu Sood who is playing the antagonist and Zara Shah who is essaying Nag’s sister, too, will be lauded for their roles.”