Writer Gopi Mohan is known for his keen observation, analytical approach to a script and good structuring of his story and screenplay. A non-controversial and a soft spoken person, he chooses his friends like he chooses his scripts; never a hurry to grab offers.
As Mister gears up for release, Gopi, who aspires to be a director, talks about his association with Sreenu Vaitla and how their rapport helped in delivering box office hits.
In 15 years of his career as a writer, Gopi has more hits than misses and continues to work and maintain a close relationship with director Sreenu Vaitla and writer Kona Venkat.
The trio had washed their dirty linen in public and the people have vivid memories of the rift. Gopi clarifies, “I never broke up with Sreenu Vaitla. We worked together till Badshah and after that I was keen to direct a film. It did not work out due to budget constraints and I dropped the idea for the time being. I worked for Loukyam for financial reasons and that was just for 20 days. The screenplay and story was by Sreedhar Seepana. People thought something was wrong because I did not do Aagadu ; and Aaagadu and Loukyam released around the same time and people thought I was a part of the rift between Kona and Sreenu Vaitla. I have no issues with either of them.”
Comedy is a binding factor between the director and the writer, with both of them having a great sense of humour. While Sreenu Vaitla has a satirical style and is good at improvising stories; Gopi infuses comedy into the story.
With his goal of being a director, for how long does Gopi want to work with Vaitla?“Till I settle down as a director. I don’t do a number of films; I work with Vaitla most of the time and that leaves me with enough time to work on my own stories.”
The Mister idea germinated three years back. Gopi wanted to narrate it to a young hero but somewhere down the line, he stopped developing the story. When Sreenu Vaitla asked him if he has a story, Gopi narrated the same and got a green signal to complete it.
The writer agrees that their films have been shot indoors and monotony stepped in. That’s why 40% of Mister has been shot outdoors. Romance is not a new theme for either of them. While Vaitla has an Anandam from the initial stages of his career, Gopi has Santosham. .
A writer enjoys more creative liberty when he works for an up and coming hero. Scripts for established stars tend to be formulaic, tailored to suit market needs.
Writers have to select a story and structure it to show heroism for a star. On the other hand, with up and coming heroes the writer can focus on the story boldly because they don’t have to meet expectations that come with a star’s image.
Gopi adds, “We did Dhee when Vishnu was relatively new and so was Ram when he signed Ready . This is Varun Tej’s fourth film. We design the character assuming it will be good. Mahesh Babu had flops when he did Dhookudu and there was pressure on us to deliver the goods. Varun has to move to the next level and this has been designed keeping that in mind.”
Though Gopi Mohan has five stories in different genres for small budget films, he is disappointed that people still expect his trademark comedy. He hopes that with the success of Mister , filmmakers might take his other stories up.
On Mister and Vaitla, he avers, “Hebah and Lavanya’s roles are crucial. Vaitla is working with Mickey J Meyer for the first time and he elevated the music with his re-recording; he is a sincere technician.”
