Telugu actor Kartikeya Gummakonda will be seen alongside actor Neha Sshetty in an upcoming Telugu film tentatively called Kartikeya9. This film is a dramedy inspired by the 1954 Japanese film Seven Samurai, says director Clax in conversation with Silverscreen India.
The upcoming film is produced by Ravindra Benerjee Muppaneni. It was launched with an inaugural ceremony on Friday and a poster of the film was released later that day.
Talking about the poster, which features various religious symbols, Clax tells us that the film offers a satirical take on religion and how it manipulates human fear. “This film is set in the recent past. I wrote the script about eight years ago. My inspiration for this story came from Akira Kurosawa’s film Seven Samurai,” he adds.
“All the comedy comes from the drama and as the plot progresses, there are instances of situational comedy,” says Clax. “Like the character of Howard Roark from the novel The Fountainhead, the film deals with a guy who fights for what he believes in and stands up against everyone, if he has to. Although it would be easier for him to oblige and agree with the majority, he chooses not to. This is the gist of Kartikeya’s role. People used to think that earth was flat, but then one person found out that it is a sphere and he faced the wrath of the others. However, he still stood against them. This is that type of a character.”
The director adds that Sshetty’s character may be described as a “bomb ready to explode” and a person who wants to “live life to the fullest” but is limited by her circumstances. “This could be why she likes the hero as well, as he does not care about what society thinks of him.”
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Aside from the two leads, the film also features Srikanth Iyengar, Ajay Ghosh, Goparaju Ramana, Jabardasth Ram Prasad, and Rajkumar Kasireddy.
The film will be edited by Viplav Nyshadam. Mani Sharma is composing the music and Clax tells us that the album may feature five or six songs in all.
The untitled film went on floors recently. It will be completely shot in Andhra Pradesh by cinematographer Sunny Kurapati. The team is looking to wrap up filming by May.