There is so much talent in the industry, all they need is an opportunity and a little push. Hyderabad-born youngster Vijay Yelakanti completed his bachelors from JNTU, but when he left abroad for higher studies, watching movies became a weekend ritual. So much so that when he returned home after completing a course in construction management, he considered venturing into something related to the movie industry. All he knew was to write good stories and a working knowledge of making videos and presentations.
Once in the city, he learnt about Ramanaidu Film School and sought admission to learn visual effects. “It was here, in 2009, that I met director Rajamouli who visited the school. He was making Eega and wanted some people to help him out with his story. I got selected by him for script development. I was credited as script assistant for that film, and I was his assistant director and handled visual effects. I worked for Bahubali-the Beginning and then did many local and national advertisements,” he says, talking about his early brush with the industry.
Vijay shares, “I learnt a lot when I worked with Rajamouli. He is a hard working and balanced. When making a film there will be ups and downs but he maintains his composure.”
While directing commercials and vision videos for corporate companies, he met Lakshmi Manchu. She was working on an advertisement for Kalanjali. Vijay liked the storyline but not the entire plot that she narrated. However he is happy to narrate the story of how he bagged his debut film. “After two months I told her a new story and said in case she didn’t like it, we would go back to her original idea. She liked mine! .”
Vijay writes his dialogues, but is well versed in Telugu. That’s because though he studied in an English medium school, his first language was Telugu. He adds, “Since I was good at languages since childhood, Telugu was never a problem. Script writing is about storytelling and whenever possible we write our dialogues. These days films are realistic, and the language is colloquial. For this film too, the dialogues are not complicated, it is what you speak in day-to-day life. The title W/O Ram emphasises the woman’s identity as someone’s wife. Her husband is dead and it’s a murder mystery. Samrat plays the husband who is murdered and she investigates the crime. It is not purely a revenge story; it’s a blend of genres but primarily a crime thriller.” She (Lakshmi Manchu) gets into the character quickly and is spontaneous. She is a brand and is associated with socially beneficial talk shows.
When the cops and investigative agencies don’t do their job properly, the woman takes things into her own hands. She is a normal woman going through a dangerous situation and has to step out of her comfort zone to do the investigation. The director says, “It has a strong emotional theme and a universal appeal. I had this idea for a long time.”
Versatile actor
Vijay Yelakanti considers Lakshmi as one of the best female actors of this generation. While he was directing her for a commercial, she had apparently given him 10 different expressions.
He appreciates her versatility, “She gets into the character quickly and is spontaneous. She is a brand and is associated with socially beneficial talk shows. When I met her, I found her to be polite and humble.”
The film is of 1 hour 55 minutes duration, shot in Hyderabad, and produced by Vivek and Lakshmi Manchu. “Lakshmi helped me pool the entire team. Except for my first AD (assistant director), she helped me in getting a good team,” says Vijay.
Raghu Dixit is making his music debut in Telugu, though the film will not have the typical songs. Tammiraju is on board as the editor, cinematography is by Samala Bhaskar ( Dongataa ), and Sundeep is a dialogue writer.”
