The Teja Sajja starrer hit the screens worldwide on Friday, 12 January, receiving positive talk all over social media circles.
Prashanth Varma. (Supplied)
Did you know? The VFX company, which handled the superhero film Hanu-Man, couldn’t meet the deadlines and requested more time. This journey enabled its director Prasanth Varma to learn the VFX work.
The Teja Sajja-starrer — released worldwide on Friday, 12 January — is receiving positive talk from various sections of people and also on social media.
“Supposed to be completed in nine months, Hanu-Man took more time to see the light. We wanted to understand all about visual effects. However, the nuances became apparent only after commencing the film,” says Prasanth Varma.
He adds, “While Teja Sajja’s earlier film Zombie Reddy had 50 shots of VFX, Hanuman has 1,600. The VFX company couldn’t meet the deadlines which opened the doors to a wealth of knowledge for me. Now, I can make VFX-oriented projects all by myself (laughs).”
Q. How did you convince Teja Sajja for the role of Hanumanthu?
Teja Sajja in ‘Hanu-Man’. (X)
A. Teja Sajja is a senior to me. He doesn’t need acting lessons (laughs), but I gave him a makeover in Hanu-Man.
In Zombie Reddy (2021), he looked more like a city-bred youngster. Here in Hanu-Man, he appears naive — just like an innocent village lad.
Once the transformation was complete, there was no turning back.
Teja worked tirelessly on this film, even rejecting other projects until Hanu-Man was finished.
Everyone personally likes Teja Sajja. He hasn’t developed a mass image yet. I felt he was ideal for this role. The audience, while watching Hanu-Man, should feel a natural connection and emotion when the protagonist gains superpowers.
Hanu-Man marks the inaugural venture into the superhero world from the director Prashant Varma’s cinematic universe.
The visual spectacle featuring Teja Sajja in the lead has garnered global attention with its teaser, songs, and trailer.
It is produced by K Niranjan Reddy under the banner Primeshow Entertainment.
Q. Hanu-Man has any references from legendary star NT Rama Rao’s titled Superman (1980)?
A. No, but we did pay homage to NTR’s Superman through Hanu-Man.
Initially, we thought ours was the first superhero movie in Telugu. But later, we found out about NTR’s film. In line with that, we’ve incorporated Superman homages in our project.
Q. The stories of Superman movies often follow a template. What’s new in Hanu-Man?
A. Hanu-Man adheres to the superhero-film template, but the novelty lies in our Telugu filmmaking style.
If renowned filmmaker SS Rajamouli garu were to make a Batman movie, it would certainly have his signature style.
In essence, I’ve planned to present Hanu-Man in a way similar to how Yash was portrayed in KGF.
Q. The North Indian audience is in full praise for Hanu-Man. How does that feel?
A. South Indian cinema is gaining recognition at a global level. When Hanu-Man was announced, people from North India congratulated us, expressing great anticipation for the film.
Witnessing the wonderful response from all quarters feels like a dream coming true.
A perfect family movie that you can watch with kids. Kids are having gala time watching #Hanuman@tejasajja123 @PrasanthVarma @Primeshowtweets #HanuManEverywhere #HanumanOnJan12th #HanuMania pic.twitter.com/YAdNlz7cNX
— Nirvana Cinemas (@NirvanaCinemas) January 12, 2024
Q. Hanu-Man seems to have strong content and the promotional material is creatively packaged. However, social media discussions seemed drifting off track and the focus shifted on to theaters more than content. How does it feel to you as a filmmaker?
A. As a filmmaker, my primary focus is on delivering quality content. The discussion about theatre allocation unexpectedly took centerstage.
Ideally, producers should handle such matters, but sometimes, when I come across such incidents it hurts, one has to speak up. Ultimately, after the film’s release, the focus shifted to the content, more than the trivia prevailing on the internet.
Hanu-Man is a special film, and we plan to create more such films that we can be proud of for the next decade.
Jul 01, 2024
Jul 01, 2024
Jun 30, 2024
Jun 29, 2024
Jun 29, 2024
Jun 29, 2024
