The first look poster of Kanam, the upcoming Tamil film starring actor Sharwanand and Amala Akkineni in the lead roles, was released by the makers of the film on social media on Thursday, on the occasion of Diwali.
The film, which is titled Oke Oka Jeevitham in Telugu, is written and directed by debutant filmmaker Shree Karthick. It is produced by SR Prabhu and SR Prakash Babu under the Dream Warrior Pictures banner. The makers, on Thursday, also released a separate poster for the Telugu version of the film.
The film is slated to release in theatres in February 2022.
Speaking to Silverscreen India, Shree Karthik said about its maiden directorial, “It is a feel-good sci-fi drama. The film is mostly about emotions between a mother and son, with a touch of friendship and nostalgic comedy. There will be a time-travel concept as well. This film will be a dedication to my mom. It is because of her that I wrote this story.”
Shree Karthik, who has a background in ad filmmaking and is a dancer, said that he was more drawn towards storytelling. “I started this story in 2017 and it is a very personal story for me because of the emotional quotient. I pitched it to the producers and they were excited to do this. It was their idea to back this project on a big scale and make it into a bilingual,” he added.
Besides Sharwanand and Akkineni, the bilingual will also feature Ritu Varma and Nasser. All four will feature in both versions. While in the Tamil version, Sathish and Ramesh Thilak will be playing Sharwanand’s friends, in Telugu their roles will be reprised by Vennela Kishore and Priyadarshi respectively.
“While I was writing the story, I knew the mother’s character is a pivotal role and I had no other option apart from Amala mam. I admire her face that is filled with positivity and divinity. I needed that type of personality. Every scene, thereafter, was written for her. After she came onboard, we felt Sharwanand is a better artist to pull it off, since it is a bilingual. We thought that the audience should have a connect. He had a boy-next-door look in him, and found him apt as well,” Shree Karthik explained.
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The film was separately shot in Telugu and Tamil by cinematographer Sujith Sarang. “Each shot is taken separately and in a cultural way, while keeping in mind the Telugu and Tamil audience. We thought that the story will connect more, if it comes in two languages. We have also treated it as two separate films. There are three child artists, who have also done prominent roles,” the director added.
The bilingual film went on floors in 2019 and wrapped up in 2020. It was shot in Hyderabad and Chennai. In October, the post-production work of the film was going on. Jakes Bejoy has composed the music, with Sreejith Sarang as the editor. There are three songs in the film.