While Bollywood has seen a number of biopics made on real-life heroes, seldom does one hear of a biopic made on a villain. Sachiin Joshi treads off the beaten path, and into the dense jungles literally, with his latest production, Veerappan. The biopic based on India's sandalwood smuggler by the same name is directed by Ram Gopal Varma. Calling the bandit's journey from a teal supplier to a ruthless criminal exciting, actor-producer Sachiin points out, “When Ramu and I started exploring more details, we were fascinated as well as shocked. The call of the jungle is alive in all of us. Dark subjects are often more attractive to the human mind. Though Veerappan also killed elephants for their tusks and abducted people for a ransom, he was a Robin Hood for villagers living near forests.“

Quiz him about the casting and he answers, “Ramu viewed the auditions before finally casting Sandeep Bharadwaj. We chose National Award winner Usha Jadhav to essay his wife's role as she is a brilliant actress. Lisa Ray plays Priya, a woman who helps the government to nab him.“ To make the movie look authentic, the makers shot across the jungles of Karnataka where the criminal reigned. Ask him if he was apprehensive that the film may seem like it is glorifying a baddie, Sachiin, who plays a cop in it, replies, “We are neither glorifying the character nor demeaning him. Our intention is to tell the story of a criminal.“

Veerappan, produced by Viiking Media & Entertainment Pvt Ltd, releases on May 27.