Hanu Raghavapudi: The war in ‘Sita Ramam’ is an internal battle

Dulquer Salmaan, Mrunal Thakur and Rashmika Mandanna’s ‘Sita Ramam’ is a throwback to the era of letter writing and internal conflicts between characters, says director Hanu Raghavapudi

Dulquer Salmaan and Mrunal Thakur in ‘Sita Ramam’

An unopened inland letter Hanu Raghavapudi found in a book he bought from one of the many booksellers in Koti, Hyderabad, was a starting point for his film Sita Ramam. An unopened letter from the past plays a crucial part in the romance drama starring Dulquer Salmaan, Mrunal Thakur and Rashmika Mandanna, set to release in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam on August 5. 

“The letter I found in that book, in 2007, was from a mother to her son. I gathered that their family is from Vijayawada and the son is living in a hostel. She had enquired about his well being and asked when he would be home. It got me thinking, what if the contents of the letter had something crucial that could change the course of events?” Hanu reminisces.  

Hanu’s debut film as director was Andala Rakshasi in 2012. Years before that, he had assisted director Chandra Sekhar Yeleti. In between projects, he would write stories. He explored the idea of an unopened letter in different stories over the years. 

It wasn’t until a couple of years ago when one of his new team members Rajkumar suggested an Army backdrop that the story of Sita Ramam took shape: “Rajkumar is new to the film industry and hails from Eluru. He suggested an Army backdrop and after discussing it with my team, I knew we had something interesting.” 

Hanu Raghavapudi on the sets of ‘Sita Ramam’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The internal war

Hanu, Rajkumar and Jay Krishna, one of his earlier associates, got together to write the screenplay and dialogues. Hanu reiterates that Sita Ramam is more than a period love story: “A lot of people ask me if the story happens during the war since the tagline says ‘yuddham tho raasina prema katha’ (a love story written with war). Here, the war refers to the characters’ internal conflicts. The invisible war we wage within ourselves is the biggest in our lives.”

In the film, Rashmika Mandanna has the onus of tracking down Sita. Sita Ramam shifts between 1965, tracing the romance between Ram and Sita, and 1985 when Rashmika and Tharun Bhascker’s characters have to solve the puzzle. The choice of actors, says Hanu, was intended to break the norm. While he and producer Swapna Dutt of Vyjayanthi Movies felt Dulquer would be an apt choice for Ram, they zeroed in on Mrunal, wanting a fresh face for Telugu cinema: “I wanted the actor who played Sita to not have an image baggage; but I also wanted someone with acting experience. Mrunal fit the bill.” 

Rashmika Mandanna in ‘Sita Ramam’

As for Rashmika, Hanu states that she plays a rebellious, strong character called Afreen. The search was on for another 1980s character who would have a fresh approach to acting and director Tharun Bhascker was roped in. The cast includes Sumanth, Bhumika Chawla, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Murali Sharma and Prakash Raj.

Army in the 1960s

Hanu, cinematographer P S Vinod and production designer Sunil Babu wanted the film to reflect a lived-in atmosphere of the mid 1960s and the 80s. “The easier aspect is to go through books, videos and talk to people to find authentic clothing and props that suit these decades. The tougher part was to understand how human relations worked within the Army back then. We spoke to officers to know the prevalent equations between officers of different ranks,” says Hanu, adding that the colour palette and shot divisions were different for both the decades.

Alongside the visual aesthetics, Hanu was particular about the sound and music for the period love story. Most often, the songs from his films turn into earworms that are played long after the film stops being in the news. However, Hanu wanted to go further: “I have seen how people listen to maestro Ilaiyaraaja’s melodies from the 1980s and 90s on music apps or YouTube and continue to be mesmerised. I wanted music of that quality and my friend Vishal Chandrasekhar has given us a wonderful album and background score.”

Taking stock

Telugu films Andala Rakshasi and Krishna Gaadi Veera Prema Gadha helped establish Hanu as a director to watch out for. LIE (Love, Intelligence, Enmity) and Padi Padi Leche Manasu, however, dampened that note of promise. Hanu agrees, “LIE was initially written like a racy actioner emerging from a road trip. I wish I had stuck to that idea. In Padi Padi..., perhaps I should have revealed the girl’s medical condition (retrograde amnesia) a little earlier in the story so that the audience reacts to her actions with empathy. The many twists and turns didn’t cut it. These two films were learning experiences.”

On the sets of Sita Ramam in Kashmir, Spiti Valley, Siddhpur in Gujarat, Russia and Hyderabad, Hanu earned the reputation of being so single-mindedly focused on his work that he often put personal comfort as the last priority. Dulquer mentioned at an event how the director would be in flip-flops, unmindful of the freezing conditions in Kashmir. Hanu laughs it off with, “When work has to be done, nothing else comes to mind.”

Hanu has a few projects lined up, including two stories for web series. A Hindi film with Sunny Deol and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and a period war film starring Nani are in the pipeline. Though he is known for his romances and rom-coms, he asserts that he is equally keen on exploring action and thrillers.

At the moment, he beams with satisfaction at Sita Ramam and vouches that it will be worth a trip to the theatres: “There is something magical and pure about writing letters, which we have forgotten now. This has been one of my most satisfying films.”