“TELLING US THINGS WE DON’T NEED TO KNOW IS WHAT AILS THE INDIAN MOVIE”,
SAYS HOLLYWOOD SCRIPT WRITING COACH ROBERT MCKEE
http://www.thehansindia.info/Updates/pdf/2012/Feb/12//HYD/19.pdf
Apr 3, 2012
Edida: The Master of Classics
Published in The Hans India on March 25, 2012
“Not winning the Dadasaheb Phalke Award does not make a difference to me as I have always got more than I had bargained for. My productions have become the biggest grossers of Telugu industry, have won critic’s appreciation and remain etched in people’s hearts. What more can I ask for?” Edida Nageshwara Rao, the man behind masterpieces like ‘Sankarabharanam’ and ‘Sagara Sangamam’ tells Manju Latha Kalanidhi
Edida: The Master of Classics
“Not winning the Dadasaheb Phalke Award does not make a difference to me as I have always got more than I had bargained for. My productions have become the biggest grossers of Telugu industry, have won critic’s appreciation and remain etched in people’s hearts. What more can I ask for?” says Edida Nageshwara Rao, the man behind masterpieces like ‘Sankarabharanam’ and ‘Sagara Sangamam’
It was a monsoon evening in 1980 in Rome. The scene was at the open-air amphitheatre in the historic city where his production ‘Sankarabharanam’ was being screened for an international audience at a film festival. The movie had almost reached its climax and 18 minutes of the movie was left when there was a heavy downpour.
The 1,200-plus audience’s knee-jerk reaction was to stand up and look for a shelter. Surprisingly, not one moved. They stood spellbound in their seats in perfect silence with only the sound of the rain and the song in the movie dominating the ambience. The movie ended. A wave of applause and claps went up to a deafening crescendo. “After having received that standing ovation from an international audience who did not know a word of Telugu, I think there is nothing more I can ask for,” says Edida Nageshwara Rao, 78, as he recalls about his first blockbuster production directed by Kalatapaswi K Vishwanath.
His nomination for the Dadasaheb Phalke Award has brought him back into the news (veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee won it for 2011) and not winning it hardly matters to him. Just being nominated with the likes of actor Pran is enough to make him happy, he says. His production house Poornodaya Creations has made classics which not only turned out to be blockbusters but also bagged awards from across the world. The filmography itself is impressive - ‘Sankarabharanam’ (1979), ‘Sagara Sangamam’ (1983), ‘Swathi Muthyam’ (1985), ‘Swayamkrushi’ (1987), ‘Sitaara’ (1983), ‘Seethakoka Chiluka’ (1981). Each of the movies invariably dealt with artistes, their struggles, social issues etc.
His house in Film Nagar, Hyderabad, is also named as ‘Sankarabharanam’. The rangolis on the walls speak of his taste. The drawing room is spartan with no LCDs or Home Theatres. His wife Jayalakhsmi personally fetches water to guests and when the gentleman walks in, he is simplicity personified. Like him, his movies also are simple, yet profound.
No hype, publicity stunts, ‘item songs’ or skin show, the movies went on to break collection records, not just in Andhra Pradesh. ‘Sankarabharanam’ ran for two years at Kavita theatre in Kochi (where the dialogues were in Malayalam, but songs were in Telugu); ‘Sagara Sangamam’ ran for 511 days in Mysore. ‘Siri Siri Muvva’ was screened for 275 days at Shubam Talkies in Chennai. Such was the records the movies broke!
The veteran producer who hails from Kakinada started off as a theatre artiste and was known as ‘Natakala Nageshwara Rao’. During his theatre days, he bumped into actors who put him across to director K Vishwanath. The duo worked together to come up with a list of classics that remain unsurpassable even today for its content and collections. The patriarch of the production house – which is now run by his son Sriram – says he is now retired as he has given his best.
So what is the secret of his stupendous success. “My sound judgement. Whether it was about insisting that Vishwanath retain the innocence of Sivayya’s character (Kamal Haasan) in ‘Swathi Muthyam ‘or not letting the main characters die in ‘Seetakoka Chiluka’ (based on inter-caste love), I prevailed on major decisions and it paid off.
Vishwanath was tempted to make Kamal’s character as a smart one, but I thought it would kill the charm of the movie. Although the original of ‘Seetakoka Chiluka’ in Tamil has the Christian girl and Hindu boy dying at the end and sacrificing their love, I wanted it to have a happy ending when I produced it in Telugu. It was the time when inter-religious marriages were catching up and I wanted to send the right and responsible signal to the society.”
He clarifies that he made each movie with the primary idea of making money. “Obviously it involved huge stakes. However, I never compromised on my values, principles or ethics to make a hit production,” he says.
What does he think about today’s movies not getting any awards in the National level? “Firstly, are there any movies that the producers themselves are confident of?” he asks. He also won the Special Jury award for 2010. “The award came as an afterthought after my nomination for Dadasaheb came by. It is ridiculous and I am embarrassed that the state government thought of it after the national award nomination happened. These awards are based on a jury’s opinion. I would have won if there was a ballet, not the opinion of a biased few,” he added.
Any mistakes he made in his illustrious career? The only movie in which he was not involved personally – but produced it anyway – was ‘Swara Kalpana’ made by Vamsi. “It was the only flop in my career and for obvious reasons.”
“Not winning the Dadasaheb Phalke Award does not make a difference to me as I have always got more than I had bargained for. My productions have become the biggest grossers of Telugu industry, have won critic’s appreciation and remain etched in people’s hearts. What more can I ask for?” Edida Nageshwara Rao, the man behind masterpieces like ‘Sankarabharanam’ and ‘Sagara Sangamam’ tells Manju Latha Kalanidhi
Edida: The Master of Classics
“Not winning the Dadasaheb Phalke Award does not make a difference to me as I have always got more than I had bargained for. My productions have become the biggest grossers of Telugu industry, have won critic’s appreciation and remain etched in people’s hearts. What more can I ask for?” says Edida Nageshwara Rao, the man behind masterpieces like ‘Sankarabharanam’ and ‘Sagara Sangamam’
It was a monsoon evening in 1980 in Rome. The scene was at the open-air amphitheatre in the historic city where his production ‘Sankarabharanam’ was being screened for an international audience at a film festival. The movie had almost reached its climax and 18 minutes of the movie was left when there was a heavy downpour.
The 1,200-plus audience’s knee-jerk reaction was to stand up and look for a shelter. Surprisingly, not one moved. They stood spellbound in their seats in perfect silence with only the sound of the rain and the song in the movie dominating the ambience. The movie ended. A wave of applause and claps went up to a deafening crescendo. “After having received that standing ovation from an international audience who did not know a word of Telugu, I think there is nothing more I can ask for,” says Edida Nageshwara Rao, 78, as he recalls about his first blockbuster production directed by Kalatapaswi K Vishwanath.
His nomination for the Dadasaheb Phalke Award has brought him back into the news (veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee won it for 2011) and not winning it hardly matters to him. Just being nominated with the likes of actor Pran is enough to make him happy, he says. His production house Poornodaya Creations has made classics which not only turned out to be blockbusters but also bagged awards from across the world. The filmography itself is impressive - ‘Sankarabharanam’ (1979), ‘Sagara Sangamam’ (1983), ‘Swathi Muthyam’ (1985), ‘Swayamkrushi’ (1987), ‘Sitaara’ (1983), ‘Seethakoka Chiluka’ (1981). Each of the movies invariably dealt with artistes, their struggles, social issues etc.
His house in Film Nagar, Hyderabad, is also named as ‘Sankarabharanam’. The rangolis on the walls speak of his taste. The drawing room is spartan with no LCDs or Home Theatres. His wife Jayalakhsmi personally fetches water to guests and when the gentleman walks in, he is simplicity personified. Like him, his movies also are simple, yet profound.
No hype, publicity stunts, ‘item songs’ or skin show, the movies went on to break collection records, not just in Andhra Pradesh. ‘Sankarabharanam’ ran for two years at Kavita theatre in Kochi (where the dialogues were in Malayalam, but songs were in Telugu); ‘Sagara Sangamam’ ran for 511 days in Mysore. ‘Siri Siri Muvva’ was screened for 275 days at Shubam Talkies in Chennai. Such was the records the movies broke!
The veteran producer who hails from Kakinada started off as a theatre artiste and was known as ‘Natakala Nageshwara Rao’. During his theatre days, he bumped into actors who put him across to director K Vishwanath. The duo worked together to come up with a list of classics that remain unsurpassable even today for its content and collections. The patriarch of the production house – which is now run by his son Sriram – says he is now retired as he has given his best.
So what is the secret of his stupendous success. “My sound judgement. Whether it was about insisting that Vishwanath retain the innocence of Sivayya’s character (Kamal Haasan) in ‘Swathi Muthyam ‘or not letting the main characters die in ‘Seetakoka Chiluka’ (based on inter-caste love), I prevailed on major decisions and it paid off.
Vishwanath was tempted to make Kamal’s character as a smart one, but I thought it would kill the charm of the movie. Although the original of ‘Seetakoka Chiluka’ in Tamil has the Christian girl and Hindu boy dying at the end and sacrificing their love, I wanted it to have a happy ending when I produced it in Telugu. It was the time when inter-religious marriages were catching up and I wanted to send the right and responsible signal to the society.”
He clarifies that he made each movie with the primary idea of making money. “Obviously it involved huge stakes. However, I never compromised on my values, principles or ethics to make a hit production,” he says.
What does he think about today’s movies not getting any awards in the National level? “Firstly, are there any movies that the producers themselves are confident of?” he asks. He also won the Special Jury award for 2010. “The award came as an afterthought after my nomination for Dadasaheb came by. It is ridiculous and I am embarrassed that the state government thought of it after the national award nomination happened. These awards are based on a jury’s opinion. I would have won if there was a ballet, not the opinion of a biased few,” he added.
Any mistakes he made in his illustrious career? The only movie in which he was not involved personally – but produced it anyway – was ‘Swara Kalpana’ made by Vamsi. “It was the only flop in my career and for obvious reasons.”
Mar 17, 2012
Daughter of my dreams
Why do I always feel that moms who blog are truly super women? Perhaps the thought and assumption that if they are married, have kids, perhaps have jobs and still manage to find some time to talk about their child, life and other issues, they must be really good time managers, perhaps they must really be passionate, perhaps they love their wards so much that they dont leave any stone or blog unturned.
Now, will I be able to do this.. Let me give it a try I could discontinue in a few days.. u'll never know. I am not sure how much I can sustain.. but nevertheless..
First, what was it that I wanted when I imagined a family. For some reason, I've always dreamt of having one girl child. My vision of a happy family was - happiness - celebration - festival - girl wearing glittery lehenga and twinking bangles. So there we stop at a girl child.
It is also rooted to my childhood where a friend of mine - who was a single child - somehow managed to get better marks (with my mom bemoaning - she is a single child and her mom must be giving her complete attention), she was better dressed (same reason), she is more talented (their parents can afford such things as they don't have other kids)... So it was my dream to have one child and a girl child at that. What would I have done if I had a son? I would have had another one for a girl. What would I have done if I had two sons.. I would have taken sanyaas!!! Thankfully, I got what a dreamt. End of story!
Now, will I be able to do this.. Let me give it a try I could discontinue in a few days.. u'll never know. I am not sure how much I can sustain.. but nevertheless..
First, what was it that I wanted when I imagined a family. For some reason, I've always dreamt of having one girl child. My vision of a happy family was - happiness - celebration - festival - girl wearing glittery lehenga and twinking bangles. So there we stop at a girl child.
It is also rooted to my childhood where a friend of mine - who was a single child - somehow managed to get better marks (with my mom bemoaning - she is a single child and her mom must be giving her complete attention), she was better dressed (same reason), she is more talented (their parents can afford such things as they don't have other kids)... So it was my dream to have one child and a girl child at that. What would I have done if I had a son? I would have had another one for a girl. What would I have done if I had two sons.. I would have taken sanyaas!!! Thankfully, I got what a dreamt. End of story!
Nov 23, 2011
High drama and mindless Hungama
Why do we Indians need reality shows such as Bigg Boss when we
witness great action 24x7 at the school gate, in the local train, aboard the college bus, across the movie theatre, around the traffic circle
‘Drama in real life’ was a column in Reader’s Digest for most Indians, only until Big Boss made inroads into our living room via the television screen.
Now there is rama, high drama and mindless hungama everyday in the form of these reality shows. For those who tuned in late, Big Boss is a live telecast of the lives of a bunch of cantankerous people from a heterogeneous group held captive under strange circumstances.
http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=1&subCategory=12&ContentId=18255
witness great action 24x7 at the school gate, in the local train, aboard the college bus, across the movie theatre, around the traffic circle
‘Drama in real life’ was a column in Reader’s Digest for most Indians, only until Big Boss made inroads into our living room via the television screen.
Now there is rama, high drama and mindless hungama everyday in the form of these reality shows. For those who tuned in late, Big Boss is a live telecast of the lives of a bunch of cantankerous people from a heterogeneous group held captive under strange circumstances.
http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=1&subCategory=12&ContentId=18255
Soulful Nightingale
Sunitha GOPARAJU is the voice that has regaled the Telugu audience with over 600 songs and by lending her voice to 80 heroines in 520 movies... write Manju Latha Kalanidhi
Her mobile phone caller tune is in sharp contrast to what she is. The song goes ‘Andamga lena, assalem baalena (Am I not beautiful? Am I really so awful?) but Tollywood singer and dubbing queen Sunitha Goparaju is considered to be one of the most gorgeous singers in the industry with a pleasing personality to match her looks.
Catch her in her Madhapur apartment on any work day morning and you will see a talented multi-tasker who can toss up a dosa, do a conference call with her office, answer a journo’s question and email a picture on her iPad.
On the professional front too, she juggles a host of things. “Like all Indian women, I am a good multi-tasker too. I host live music shows, I dub for the Bollywood girls in Telugu movies. And yes, I am a playback singer too,” she says proudly.
For more contact http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=2&subCategory=3&ContentId=20053
Her mobile phone caller tune is in sharp contrast to what she is. The song goes ‘Andamga lena, assalem baalena (Am I not beautiful? Am I really so awful?) but Tollywood singer and dubbing queen Sunitha Goparaju is considered to be one of the most gorgeous singers in the industry with a pleasing personality to match her looks.
Catch her in her Madhapur apartment on any work day morning and you will see a talented multi-tasker who can toss up a dosa, do a conference call with her office, answer a journo’s question and email a picture on her iPad.
On the professional front too, she juggles a host of things. “Like all Indian women, I am a good multi-tasker too. I host live music shows, I dub for the Bollywood girls in Telugu movies. And yes, I am a playback singer too,” she says proudly.
For more contact http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=2&subCategory=3&ContentId=20053
Jun 29, 2011
Review of 180
I like the little elements in 180 more than the whole package. The poster itself is interesting with the '1' looking like a depleting bone (symbolic of life's vulnerability), the 8 designed like an hourglass, again to remind you of how short life is and the 0 with a heart in it. But by the end of it.. read the rest at
http://www.upperstall.com/films/2011/180
http://www.upperstall.com/films/2011/180
Settling scores
DD came back from school saying she had one 'good' news and one 'sad' news. First the good news - She is in yellow house. Owww we are fans of yellow in our house. We have a yellow corner, yellow curtains, yellow wardrobes... The sad news - A boy from another house said Yellow Yellow Dirty Fellow :(
So DD and I decided to give tit for tat for all other groups. This is what we came up with (with help from generous friends and online forums)
Green, green, bathroom clean
Blue blue, polish my shoe
Red, red, sussu in the bed!!!
Yayyy, feeling so good after we said it aloudddd
So DD and I decided to give tit for tat for all other groups. This is what we came up with (with help from generous friends and online forums)
Green, green, bathroom clean
Blue blue, polish my shoe
Red, red, sussu in the bed!!!
Yayyy, feeling so good after we said it aloudddd
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