'Maha Samudram' will be released in theatres on October 14. In this interview, director Ajay Bhupathi talks about the movie, why it is unique, his team, his upcoming movie, OTT and Bollywood offers, and more.
Before I zeroed in on Aditi Rao Hydari, I thought of casting Samantha as Maha. This is a two-hero movie. Two-hero movies give the audience a high on the big screen.
After 'RX 100', I received a number of offers. But I was very intent on making 'Maha Samudram'. I had the storyline before the release of my first movie. The film is completely a fictional one. It's a story between two friends, two lovers, and different characters. The story is set in Vizag and explores the mentalities of the main characters.
When you are casting two heroes, the actors you pick have to have a good rapport. It's good that I got Sharwanand and Siddharth on board. Based on their body language, I adapted the dialogues and the behaviour of the characters in the final draft.
Stories that have a strong female character are long-lasting. That's why I prefer to write stories like 'RX 100' and 'MS'. As for friendship in 'MS', it talks about strong friendships. It says that friendship should be pure and life-long. Every character in the movie, be it the protagonists or the ones played by the likes of Rao Ramesh garu and Jagapathi Babu garu, have got an arc of their own. No character ends abruptly. Thanks to Sharwa and Siddhu, the output is superb.
AK Entertainments has been great to work with. To this day, I don't know the budget of the movie. I got everything that I asked for.
'RX 100' had two trailers. Neither of them revealed the main plot. The same goes with 'MS'. If the story is strong, you can afford to cut two trailers.
Love is immeasurable. That's why 'Immeasurable Love' is the caption of our movie. The characterizations are definitely drawn from my observations. Rao Ramesh garu bites his own hand. It was a mannerism of one of my relatives. Each of the characters is drawn from everyday life. You won't see heroes and heroines here. You will only see them as characters.
Composer Chaitan Bharadwaj knows my mindset and style. 'Hey Rambha' and other songs are superb. You are going to enjoy them more on the big screen. The BGM will excite the audience.
Three of those who worked on 'RX 100' have become directors. I am sure ten people who have worked on 'Maha Samudram' are going to become directors. Some of them are more talented than me.
'RX 100' had a pan-India appeal. That's why it has been remade in Hindi, among other languages. I am sure 'Maha Samudram' will eventually be remade in Hindi and other languages.
I have received Bollywood offers in the past, after 'RX 100'. But I feel at home here in Tollywood. This is a huge industry. I received a Netflix offer to direct an anthology. OTT offers a platform to explore ideas that can't be explored for the silver screen.
I want to try all genres. My next film is going to be a mass entertainer. Talks are on and I can't reveal the name of the hero as yet.
