Ashoka Vanamlo Arjuna Kalyanam, the upcoming Telugu film starring Vishwak Sen in the lead, is a family entertainer that will leave the audience with a sense of nostalgia, says Vidhya Sagar Chinta, the director of the film, in a conversation with Silverscreen India.
The first look poster and a short video introducing Sen’s character Arjun Kumar Allam, a 30+ year-old man in search of a bride, were recently released by the makers on social media. “The film is about Arjun and his marriage. He is 34 years and has many insecurities about getting married. The many rejections he has faced have also got him to this point. He desperately wants to get married and faces family pressure to do so as well,” explains the director. “The story will follow the hurdles that he faces in the process. The film is set in the backdrop of the East Godavari district.”
It is the first directorial venture for the cinematographer-turned-director. The film, which is backed by producers Bapineedu, and Sudheer Edara, has a story written by filmmaker Ravikiran Kola.
Vidhya Sagar, who has earlier worked as a cinematographer for Kola’s 2019 film Raja Vaaru Rani Gaaru (2019), has also collaborated with Sen on Falaknuma Das (2019) and Vellipomakey (2017). “I was interested in direction during film school, where we had directing sessions as well. I wanted to explore direction and was looking for a good script to make my directorial debut with. While working with Kola on Raja Vaaru Rani Gaaru, he pitched this script, which I found interesting.”
The pre-production of Ashoka Vanamlo Arjuna Kalyanam began in August 2020. “There are so many characters, about 25 of them. And we were particular about casting new faces to give the film a freshness, so it took us time to carry out the auditions. We finalised the cast, which includes some known faces, in June and began filming recently,” says the director.
Apart from Sen, Goparaju Ramana, Kadambari Kiran, and Kedar Shankar are also part of the cast. “We are planning to reveal a few important cast names in the coming weeks. There are two heroines – one is a known face and the other is a newcomer,” he adds.
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Vidhya Sagar is not handling the film’s cinematography and has instead brought Pavi K Pavan on board for the task. “Cinematography is a big responsibility, for which there should be a designated person. To handle both direction and cinematography, would be hard. I need to focus on getting the best work from the actors,” he explains.
The filmmaker adds that the first schedule has been completed and second one will start shortly. Ashoka Vanamlo Arjuna Kalyanam is being shot in Hyderabad and Palakollu in Andhra Pradesh.
The director also reveals that the film will include four songs, composed by music director Jai Krish, and the recording is currently in progress.
The makers are looking to wrap up the film by the end of October and plan to release it in theatres this year.