Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; March 24, 2019)

Though he is known for his work in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil cinema, Rana Daggubati’s iconic portrayal of Bhallaladeva in SS Rajamouli’s epic blockbuster Baahubali, made him a household name across the country. While most people might primarily know him for his onscreen persona, the multi-faceted star dabbles in producing films, VFX co-ordination, creating comic books, anchoring a talk show and more. Rana often shuttles between Mumbai and Hyderabad (his home), juggling a career in two film industries. During one of his recent work trips to Mumbai, BT caught up with him at a suburban cafe. Not only did he share a major film announcement with us (his upcoming home production Hiranyakashyap), but also expressed his views on India’s diverse film culture, the passion that goes into bringing our mythological stories on celluloid, his filmy lineage and more. Excerpts...

TV host, producer, VFX coordinator, multilingual actor (Tamil, Hindi, Telugu). How do you manage dabbling in so many things at a time?
I don’t look at it as multiple things. For me, it’s part of one system. I started off at 17 or 18 because I loved films and wanted to be a part of them, not knowing in what capacity. I started with visual effects, produced films, and then became an actor. I do tech stuff and also make comic books. Somewhere, I believe it’s all a part of storytelling. Each project defines what part I play in it. When you grow up in a film environment, it’s hard to draw a balance. What I like the most is telling a story which can hold the audience’s attention. It can be through a book or a film. Films automatically become the biggest spectacle because they push all these crafts together and you can display it on a giant screen. That’s the kind of connect you want to have as a storyteller with the audience and for that, I do many things.

Baahubali is a landmark film for India. No matter what you achieve in your film career, do you think that it would be difficult to surpass what that film has done for you?
It was a turning point in my career and it is special not just to me. In fact, Baahubali did for Indian cinema what Star Wars did for the world many years ago. We woke up to spectacle cinema with it and believed that we can create our own spectacles. The design of the war, weapons, action and choreography were all rooted in Indian culture. Baahubali united us cinematically as a nation. It proved that a great story can cut across anywhere and that people will watch it irrespective of the language and star cast. For people who saw Baahubali in Hindi, Prabhas and I were newcomers. It didn’t matter to them who the lead actors were. Baahubali opened doors for everything else that I am doing today. I am able to tell one story in multiple languages, which wasn’t the case before. Earlier, you were bound by a language and that restricted you to a particular film industry.

From one epic to another. Tell us about your forthcoming film Hiranyakashyap. Is it your most ambitious film till date?
Renowned Telugu filmmaker Gunasekhar is directing Hiranyakashyap. He has been involved with this film for three years now. We are building our sets in a couple of studios in Hyderabad. Of course, it is ambitious. How Baahubali took the folklore a notch higher, this is a mythological film for which we are trying to achieve the same. We are all Telugu filmmakers and historically, this is where it started for us. Folklore and mythology were the biggest genres we had, and somewhere over the years, they disappeared. They are expensive to make and you need a lot of discipline for it. It took six years for Baahubali to be made. We are already in two years of pre-production and writing for Hiranyakashyap. We haven’t gone on floors yet. These films require a lot of time, effort and energy, but the upside is also much higher.

What drew you to this mythological tale in particular and will we see you acting in it?
Hiranyakashyap as a tale is very special to us because that was the first Telugu film that was ever made — Bhakta Prahlada (1932). The tale was retold about 50 years ago in 1967 with our very popular actor SV Ranga Rao playing Hiranyakashipu. The film was also made in Kannada in 1983 with Rajkumar playing the character. It’s a tale that has been etched in India’s culture and is one of the few mythological tales that tells the story of the entire universe. These stories have been passed onto us by generations and with technology, these are the kind of films that we can now present better and in the right format. My father’s (Daggubati Suresh Babu) Suresh Productions is producing the film along with another studio. I will be playing the titular (Hiranyakashipu) role in the film. We will be shooting in two languages — Hindi and Telugu — for now and it will be dubbed in other languages as well.

The film is bound to be high on VFX. Considering it’s your home production, are the stakes higher?
We are still in prep and around 16-17 studios across the world are working on it. Producing films is our first job, so the intent is always to back the right content. Mythology resonates with the entire country; it doesn’t matter whether the audience is in North or South India. People want to watch content-driven cinema. It’s the best time to be in the movie business. People want to watch the big films as well as indie films.

You have collaborated with Amar Chitra Katha on it, tell us the thought behind that and how did it work out?
We are working very closely with Amar Chitra Katha. It is the only comic book company that has mastered the art of telling Indian stories to the modern world in an effective way. We are trying to encompass the entire universe that the Hindu mythology holds and bring it back in the best possible format and take it forward. I work for both Suresh Productions and Amar Chitra Katha.

This generation is more exposed to Marvel, DC comics or the MCU, films like Hiranyakashyap will introduce many to our stories, culture and tradition...
Yes, our stories need to be told in a fashion that’s necessary for this audience. As filmmakers, it’s also our responsibility to take our stories forward for generations ahead. In the times of ancient sages, the poets did this for us and then came films. Whether you are a believer of God or not, these stories are so detailed and well written, that it’s unbelievable. In America, their comic books are the mythology that they have built and Marvel Cinematic Universe has recreated it brilliantly. The world is watching it.

Tell us a bit about your company, Anthill...
I have been a tech person way before I became an actor. There was so much happening in the rest of the world which was not happening in India, whether it’s applications, augmented reality or virtual reality. We wanted to build one unit that’s actually an accelerator, and find tech companies in the media and entertainment business and scale them up in India. I am a partner in Anthill. We are based in Singapore and Hyderabad.

You shuttle between Mumbai and Hyderabad for work. Is there any striking difference as far as how the two film industries function?
I have been coming to Mumbai for 10 years now. It’s like a second home now. Obviously there are differences in the way both these industries function, but you can’t really pinpoint them, as that is what defines that industry. For instance, there is paparazzi culture in Mumbai; in Hyderabad, that has not caught up yet. Our airport is really far away, so you don’t really bother about the ‘airport look’ there. It’s a different community, everyone lives far away, and you can’t catch two people in the same place (laughs!). Also, unlike Mumbai which has a lot of migrants, Hyderabad comprises mostly of people who are from there. So culturally, it is different.

Is marriage on the cards?
It’s not on my mind right now. You need to find the right person (smiles).