Director YVS Choudury

Master of hat-trick
YVS Choudury, who was discovered by Nagarjuna, made his directorial debut with his mentor’s home production Seetaramkalyanam Chudamurarandi with newcomers.
Its success heralded the entry of a young director who believed in richly mounted films. Impressed with Choudury’s work, Nagarjuna made him direct him in Seetaramaju. The film evoked
interest as it also starred NTR’s son Harikrishna. YVS proved that he could handle the big stars too.
His third film Yuvaraju, with teen-sensation Mahesh, was also a hit. Now he turns producer with a love story, setting aside his other directorial offers. A tete-a-tete with the promising
director-turned-producer ...

Isn’t it too early for you to take up production?
When I got a good script revolving round five pairs of lovers of different age groups, I felt it could be the right project to get into production. I have become a producer so that I can make films of my choice and taste without compromising. Directors EVV and SV Krishna Reddy lauded my decision and when I received appreciation of buyers, too, I knew I had taken the right step.

Will it be a lavish production like all your earlier films?
I am making it under my newly setup banner - Bommariluvari Productions. It is basically a youthful love story, about the game that love plays in the lives of five different couples. It will definitely have a good entertainment value. I have always believed that the subject should demand the budget and not the other way round. Yes, like always, this film too will be richly mounted. Shooting will commence from December and it will be shot entirely in various villages of Andhra Pradesh. MM Keervani is to compose music for the film while the cast and rest of the credits will be finalised soon.

After the success of Rakumarudu, expectations were very high for Mahesh’s next film Yuvaraju but you belied those expectations when you cast him as a father in the film.

Mahesh liked the story that I narrated to him. We felt that disclosing about his son would be a major twist in the film. We still feel that it has a novel point. Though some industry people did find fault with it, it went on to become a big hit. Though you have worked with Raghavendra Rao and Ram Gopal Varma, your style reflects that of the former since you give more prominence to fantasy than theme.

Actually some similarities may have crept in unknowingly, but I am trying my best to carve a distinctive niche for myself and I don’t agree with your statement. After selecting a story, one needs to add fantasy elements to make a film commercially viable since crores of rupees are involved. To be on the safer side, the script should be prepared with all sections of the audience in mind since it has to fetch returns both for the producer as well as the buyers.

How does it feel to be the discovery of Nagarjuna?
I will remain ever so grateful to him for launching me and for giving me a chance to direct him. I would describe him as the ‘celluloid scientist’ since he clearly knows what it takes to make a successful film. He always gives a free hand to his technicians unlike others and all aspiring directors must work with him since he doesn’t scuttle your creativity.

Is it true that you reshot all the three films and invariably hiked the budget?
These are baseless rumours spread by vested interests. Why don’t you check up with the producers with whom I have worked for the truth? For big films, it was natural to have a marginal increase in the budgets. It was not because of my reshooting. If that was the case, I wouldn’t have had offers from big banners. As I said earlier, some disgrunted directors are spreading these rumours because of envy and I don’t mind them since I have the support and encouragement from bigwigs of the industry today.

BVS Prakash