Craving for a recall value: Shiva

Shiva Raj Kanumuri who made his directorial debut with ‘Jayammu Nischayammu Raa’ is a happy man. The romantic entertainer was released on Friday to an encouraging response. “I’m really pleased to see the accolades pouring in for the film, particularly at the time of demonetization.

The entire team has done a commendable job and it’s always good to see things paying off. Srinivas Reddy was so fascinated with the script that he immediately started discussing about the cast and locations. I believe in the script and feel I can do justice to it if I can produce it,” he says.

He says that he was inspired by Ram Gopal Varma’s films. “I saw ‘Shiva’ and was awestruck, and after ‘Satya’, I decided to turn filmmaker,” reveals, adding, “One of the reasons to trim my film’s content (by 15 minutes) is to increase the pace.”

"I always wanted my film to be felt as a memorable experience by the audience and call for grater recall value. I developed the script with the basic idea that it should be set up in a realistic world and its characters rooted in the ordinary world of our lives for greater connect,” Shiva adds.

The director was inspired by Rachakonda Viswanatha Sastry garu's 'Alpa Jeevi', Robert Hamer's 'School For Scoundrels', Basu Chatterji's 'Choti Si Baath' and Billy Wilder's 'The Apartment'. “I want to present 'Desivali Vinodam', (local entertainment). The locations were finalized after traveling across the countryside of Karimnagar and Kakinada."

The film is about an introvert low on confidence and his journey through the new opportunities as well as ordeals. “I don’t believe in superstitions and that’s the reason why I have included scenes where the hero eventually trashes them and starts believing in himself.

Personality development is a subject that has always invited my attention. The support cast was a huge asset and what’s really heartening to see is other filmmakers like Sukumar, Vakkantham Vamsi, etc appreciating the film,” he signs off.