After having wrapped up Raju gadu starring Amyka and Raj Tharun, débutante director Sanjana Reddy is spending time at home with her dogs and relaxing.
Utilising her free time, she has decided to go on a detox and is regretting her decision. However, Sanjana is honest in saying her shift to direction happened without a warning or planning.
When Sanjana Reddy took a break as an electronic media journalist with a regional TV channel, she had planned to stay away till the polls. “I wanted to take a break and come back rejuvenated to do spot reporting on the elections. I was all set to go for a holiday,” recollects Sanjana.
During that time, she was meeting friends and acquaintances to know what goes into film-making.
As a journalist she felt she needed to make the shift and wanted to honestly get into script writing. “So I met a lot of people, sat for story sessions and attended talks on script writing. It was exciting and inspiring but I realised I wasn’t ready to do that yet. I continued to attend the seminars and story narration sessions in order to continue to learn about this fine craft,” says Sanjana.
With her mind still set on a holiday by freak chance of luck she landed at RGV (Ram Gopal Varma’s) office. “Ramu sir was busy and he definitely had no time to spare to talk about my career choice. However, he said one thing, ‘people will talk of options and give their opinion, how you want to steer your boat is upto you. If you want to work hands-on, there is a requirement for an AD (assistant director) in my office. You can still go ahead and travel for your holiday but your mind will be wandering on what next.’ Saying so, he walked off. Those words worked like a kick starter and even before I realised I was working with RGV on Mohan Babu starrer Rowdy. ”
Sanjana says the first day was like being at school for her. She didn’t just learn the nuances but also felt important that she could share her views, her inputs were counted and it was like going to school once again. “RVG has lots to show to newcomers and teach. I wasn’t scared of him or the angry image. He was clear about the output, how one does it isn’t his concern, so that also gave everyone a free-hand to learn and improvise and work better,” says Sanjana. The shift from AD to a director is strenuous but works keeps her busy and happy.
Raju gadu which is being produced by AK entertainment’s, Anil Sunkara is slated for a late October release. “Right now we are shooting some song sequence and the ride has been a great one. By the way, this project was also unplanned for me. The offer came like a bolt from the blue and I would never refuse work. Also the production house has worked with many blockbusters. The only teaching I would take back after debuting as a director is patience. Pushing things wont take us far, we have to wait for the right time,” she smiles.
