Godavari Musings

May 2005-May2006
INTRODUCTION TO FILM MAKING:
It all started with an innocent phone call, “ Sekhar Congrats!, I heard your Anand did very well!” At that point I had not seen Anand and was just happy that someone I knew had made it big. All of last May I had been pondering, should I , shouldn’t I. After all a man is different once he has tasted success. It was a pleasant surprise then, to have Sekhar call back and agree to meet me at Pickles one hot afternoon. After 7 years, a National Award and the stupendous success of Anand, he had not changed.

In 1999 when I got a call from him to audition for his Dollar Dreams I did not know where this would lead me. He took me as ‘ Archana’ and spurred by that excitement, I brought along with me a whole retinue of actors to audition as well . My parents,
my friends Lionel and Suja, Uncle, Col Hariharan who has long since expired, all of them appear in the film. While I was no longer a part of it! He had found Sathya, who as ‘Archana’ and later as ‘Anita’ in Anand even won a Nandi for her performance. He did not have to but Sekhar made sure he credited me in the film, that was totally unexpected.

Not again I thought when he apologized over the phone about my ‘retirement’. These directors call me when they are still struggling to make their presence felt in Hyderabad, then they find someone else more suitable and say goodbye. At that time I was doing “Santoor Top Ten” with Jayant Paranji , which was a very popular countdown show. Hence all these calls. Jayant of course went on to become a major commercial name in Telugu Cinema.

Just a few years before , Nagesh Kukunoor had called saying he was making a ‘documentary’ called Hyderabad Blues. My father was insistent that our whole family land up for the audition, including our Dog ‘Cupid’ and dad was very disappointed when he was not offered Tea. I had to tell him that this was not a social visit. Of course I did not figure in Hyderabad Blues and I am not sure if it was my lack of acting skills or my
over-protective family which made Nagesh’s decision simpler! I do remember though guiding him to a few modeling coordinators and being enthralled by the whole process of filmmaking .
When we finally saw HB- the film my sister reduced my heart burn by saying:
“ Akka acha hua, I am glad you did not do this film”
All that male humour we could not stomach , ours being the pre-millennium generation.
That did not take away the fact that Nagesh was solely responsible for starting a trend not just in Hyderabad but in India. He went on to make more and more offbeat stuff and earn a good name , Sekhar soon followed, there is now a group of Telugu directors along with Chandu Yeleti , Mohan Krishna, Neelkanth and others who are making very good cinema.

STARTING THE PROCESS:
When I reached the Amigos office , I was told that I would be the Casting Director which would mean that all Speaking and Non Speaking parts had to be populated by me and my assistant Mani Gopal. It was a very thankless exercise, identifying, auditioning, negotiating. Albums of photos and directories of phone numbers kept getting filled but we were still far away from our goal. Each scene needed to be examined thoroughly to determine the number of background crowd you’d need, the man in the restaurant, the girls in the shopping complex, everybody and anybody seen in the film would be our job to find. Sekhar does not believe in “Juniors” who are easily available through the Production Managers as they are seen in most films and are jaded.

While all this was happening HimaBindu decides to leave back to the US to pursue Medicine. She is from Greenbelt, MD and we hit it off immediately. After doing an absolute meticulous job with the PROP-LIST - which is a detailed list of all the props that you would need to ‘fill the frame’ in each scene - she said goodbye. Thanks to her absence I ‘jumped’ to ART/PROP department.

‘Cut to’ me studying the PROP-LIST. Despair! When would I acquire all these items? Time? We were a week away from our first schedule and since this was to be a ‘class’ movie [ versus ‘mass’ ] how could I not worry. Money? No worries, Anish would say
“ what’s your estimate?”
“what do you mean estimate?”
Ha! Yes, that naïve I was!!
How could I conjure an estimate suddenly where just yesterday I was trying to understand ‘glamour’ and suitability of an actress for our film.
Also with all those years of bargaining for a cheap deal my shopping mentality is that of the 60’s housewife. Look at 30 shops before you buy and that too the purchase should be in installment.

Somehow I made it to the deadline and the location on time , trailing me were my assistants and my ART TRUCK. I thought my work was more or less done. The following is an attempt to show how the work is never completely done, there is always something you forget, especially in the middle of the river with no shops. I may love my choice but there will be others who think:
1] it is too expensive
2] it is too useless
3] they want it after the shoot and keep pestering you about it throughout the next 6 months !
So this is an account of those trying but wonderful times, all I remember is how some mornings we would land up at around 5.00 am for the shoot and in the biting cold the NAGRA man would start playing the GODAVARI title song. It is my favourite among all the songs that RADHAKRISHNA our music director composed along with RAMA CHAKKANI SITAKU. You don’t need to understand Telugu, after all the language of music is universal, just listen to them and enjoy. Like we all did in our team, in the Winter of 2006.

A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT:
Around 1.00pm on that day I got a call from Arvind the production manager. He said there would be a car waiting at my hotel –Hotel Surya- to take me and my team , comprising of Mohan the art assistant and his helpers, to the new location which was on the other side of Godavari. I had just about half an hour to get ready, nevertheless the prospect of this venture was exciting .Having shot on the banks of Rajamundhry city all these past weeks, here finally was the real deal! I would get to see the rural Andhra Pradesh. The famous Pattaseema.

In the sweltering heat we headed onwards on the rough road in a rickety ambassador. We were already a few hours late. I was told that Sekhar, the director, wanted me to have a look at the new boat that had to be propped up, remodeled, worked upon to house Neetu’s- the second lead heroine’s- cabin room. This was a regular tourist boat on hire just for the shoot. It was a two story affair. The engine room, the wash rooms apart, it had a ground floor cafeteria with tables and chairs and an upstairs open deck.
The getting-to took us about two hours and it was getting dark early , this being October.

We reached a location with a huge Hanuman statue on the banks of the river and a temple in the midst of the Godavari waters on an island across from where we had disembarked. It was an anti-climax , this religiosity. Everywhere we went we encountered prayers, aarti, statues of gods, small roadside temples, early morning holy dips in the river. After the commercialism of happening Hyderabad, this was a pleasant change.

Mohan examined the boat and deemed it unfit for the said use of a Heroine’s Cabin- Who is on her maiden voyage on the Godavari Waters. Here Neetu aka Raji is already engaged and to be married to Kamal aka Ravi and she is accompanied by a retinue of family and friends. How could we show a tourist boat as a posh cabin? Especially when bang in the middle of the cafeteria/room was the engine and a trap door all around it three inches high like a hurdle in a sprint race. This was why the carpenter had accompanied us, the painter too. They told Mohan what they would need to build walls, construct a set and paint it to perfection , all ready to be consumed by the camera the next morning.

All our schedules started with a call sheet of 6 .00 am which meant we got up at 3.30 am to get ready to board the bus waiting at the hotel entrance at 4.00 am to travel two hours and reach the final location. So if the next day the shoot was to start at 6.00 am, we should not be wasting another minute chatting about the kind of wood we needed and other issues like money but get going immediately. Mohan said he would go to the nearest town instead of all the way back to Rajamundhry to find what the carpenter needed. Since it was getting dark he suggested I take the tourist boat which would ply the waters to our location of Singanapally. There I would be met by Arvind - who being the manager was busy with myriad issues apart from location scouting, I could return with him in the car to the hotel, if a wee bit late. *Also, most importantly, the ART TRUCK with all our props and interior design merchandise would arrive by road so I should be around to tell them what to unload etc *
This plan seemed smarter than gallivanting about local towns for plywood and thinners. I clambered upon the plank that took me to the interiors of the boat and bid adieu to my gang and they disappeared in the smoke of the vehicle dust from my view. It hit me now that there was no signal in my cell phone and that technically I was all by myself in the middle of the Godavari strutting along under the stars to the music of Super. I had just sent an sms to Nalin about the beauty of the sunset and the unhygienic habits of the Godavari residents when the cell went beep beep and died on me. I remember Kiran , another member of our direction team, calling me and asking where the hell I was and I had just enough coverage to say “ am on my way to the location Singanapally ………………”

To start with Sekhar loves working differently, he will not have the regular film guys do his props for him just as he is particular about the kind of people that populate his film. Usually it is the job of Assistant Directors like Kiran, me and others to make “lists” the previous day and hand it in to the said department heads of Costume /Art/ Cast etc with all details of the scene and shot requirements and sit back and wait for them to mess things up so that we get to shout at them while the shoot is a few seconds away and show our importance. What he prefers is have ADs take charge of each department and use their personal and professional skills to bring out a non filmy touch to the whole exercise. By virtue of his genius here I was heading ART/PROP/INTERIORS with 8 assistants under-sorry, with me!!

We had an Art Director- Choksi Saab who built us beautiful sets, a launch we named the GODAVARI but apart from that he left it entirely unto me to learn on the job. He had other assignments he said he had to take care of and here “take Ravi and Mohan” they will help you………..he would call me off and on guiding me and checking on the progress but for the rest of the time I was on my own. It took me forever to figure out Art is different from Set and the twain shall never meet and while they still have hope, They can definitely not meet Camera. These are different worlds. The Camera department headed by the camera man is BOSS and the Set guys have to be around when the Camera turns till the camera turns OFF , while the Art guys leave the minute the Camera turns ON.

Previous evenings would be filled with frantic calls Kiran would tell me the scenes we were shooting the next day, sometimes he would not be in the know, so I would have to reach Anish and Sekhar directly , which would be tricky since their cells were constantly busy, Anish would call back despite all his other worries , patiently explain what was needed and we would all spring to action.

A TOWN LIKE RAJAMUNDHRY:
Shops in Rajamundhry close at around 9.30 pm and 10, so after we returned from the day’s shoot we would distribute work among us and head in different directions , Gandhi the Set assistant would take up the onus of buying flowers by the dozen- usually basketsful of Marigold, Roses, Jasmine . These would adorn the Gods on the launch, the launch itself draped in garlands, the heroines, the cast etc Since the flower markets opened early mornings, he would go there around 3.00am to get the freshest produce. Mohan the Art assistant would set out to work on the varnishing of furniture, the lighting of the boat, the leaks, the broken glass panels etc I would literally grab my dinner and rush via the ‘underground’ near the hotel to the ‘MAIN ROAD’ where by now everyone knew me and start my purchases of towels/ toiletries/ curtains/ whatever was needed for the next day’s shoot.

I was rewarded for this hard work by investigation from the Company accountant, hence I had to have receipts for all my purchases, which most of the times was alright but when a woman goes into bargaining and buying from the roadside and on ‘bandis’ and crafts melas receipts become an issue. Returning to the room by 10ish I would have just about energy for a few calls from Ma or Nalin or Puneet or Smitha before hitting bed, not to forget the alarm at 3.30am.

So when I got a call saying I had to see the boat to rectify it according to what Sekhar wanted it seemed normal and the right thing to do instead of sending just Mohan to figure out the job. How was I to know that Arvind would not be at Singanapally, infact no one would be at the destination except us i.e. I and these Tourist Boat operators 9 men in all who had nothing to do with Godavari the film except that they were hired for a day, so that we could use their boat and remodel it. They were tribals, men who had been helped by an IAS officer they talked of with affection-Sanjay Jaju-who had helped them acquire this Tourist Boat through a loan. The loan was still to be paid off but they were doing well going by the bookings they got from tourists and they were proud that they even had a website.
Not knowing what was in store I was blissfully enjoying the upper deck’s solitude when I felt a male presence beside me and got up with a start-“ Evaru?” I ask not showing my apprehension
‘Madam meeru CHAI taagutara?’ Question.
‘Oh Sure!’ Relief!!
‘Madam, meeru ………..?’ Confused.
‘Assistant Director’ Pride.
‘ Oh!’ Surprise.

Lord it took a whole of three hours to traverse the waters while everyone else was frantic about my whereabouts , starting at 6 pm or so it would be 9.00 pm before we reached Singanapally shores and I was already hungry, so over the next three hours I was fed with Tea/ biscuits. Coffee/ biscuits/ . More biscuits before they finally gathered courage and asked me if they could cook dinner for me too. Would I eat from their humble kitchen?

All this while I had been meaning to brush them off,
‘Please leave me alone, I like this solitary ride on the murky waters, it is a dream come true, isn’t the moonlight pretty, the sky so inky and the stars singing out to me’ but I could not grudge them their excitement, at meeting me ,of being some service to me, of having something to do with films, especially Godavari, and of course finally Sekhar, who was a demi God after his last film Anand in these parts.

Nor could I tell them to stop those film songs, starting with Anand of course they bombarded me with Super and Athadu and some raunchy numbers I quite blushed at and wished they’d let me enjoy the quietitude. After the disconcerting sudden appearances of the waiters wanting to serve me and make small talk about the film world of which I was probably not as well versed as they were, they came up again creeping up behind me asking if I needed anything special to be cooked.
“ Kodi? Chepa? Royyalu?” Chicken? Fish? Prawns? Crabs?
“ Vegetarian?”
“ Aloogadda? Potatoes?
“ OK,Saray”
Needless to say that night the very hurriedly made dinner was one of the best I have ever had, a chair was arranged on the lower deck, all these men in their sweaty bodies surrounding me, they talked me through my reasons for joining films to my marital status to the advantages of being Indian. I told them about the Native Americans and how they too had been displaced. The current issue burning in most of these villages was the POLAVARAM DAM which would soon flood the village we were headed towards as well as all the distance we had traversed , making the voyage more poignant for me.

These big dams were looked at with suspicion by the tribals who were only now beginning to make a mark in the civilized world but with the very existence of their habitats under danger they were not sure how to face the challenges of the developing world.
“ Evarakkada? Who goes there?”
“ Memu Saar” We sir , the tourist boat guys.
“Hmm”
“ Evaraina itu vellara?” Anyone pass this way?
“ Laydu Saar” No sir.
A forest officer had come by with his hangers on minutes after a whole lumberyard had floated downstream looking to catch the culprits red handed trading on teak wood , a non- bailable offence.
“ Madam they always come late after the crime has taken place, after the thief runs away………..”
“ Do they know who does this?”
“ We all do, that man under all the teak wood raft was my cousin from the next village”
“ But it’s a crime……..you agree it is environmentally destruc ………..”
“ We all have to eat Madam”
I did not have any answer for that.

Like I did not have any answer to the smirks and good natured ribbing about my insistence for clearing garbage once we completed our shoots, no point littering pristine places like the Rampachodavaram forest, which we did. Or when the production sweepers would happily sweep every available plastic cup, plate, spoon, bag into the already burdened Godavari. There was not much one could do when they said they were simply doing their job , why was I making a hue and cry about it. After a while the clearing of throats , noses, stomachs, mouths etc and dumping the phlegm into the river seemed like a normal practice and nothing to be frowned upon. It did create hygiene issues but no one around me seemed to care the least bit. So I let it be. Though I did decide to carry a large supply of trash bags with me next time I shot outdoors! Preceded by a crash course in Health and Hygiene for the whole unit !!

ANOTHER NARMADA IN THE MAKING?
The Teak logs are cut to same size and tied together by heavy ropes into a raft and floated downstream the Godavari from the forests of Maharashtra . These men undergo great and grave dangers en route to make enough money till the next season. They are mostly under water swimming, pushing, guiding the heavy raft. They sleep on the banks when it is day and start again by nightfall, they eat what they can cook after their tired limbs can no longer hold their hunger. My job compared to theirs seemed so frivolous. And I prayed for the ‘criminals’ that night ,
“ Please God, let them escape”

It is funny how one’s perspective changes with a change in one’s point of view. I guess a filmmaker needs to know that first, before anything else.
We reach Singanapally and wait an hour in the darkness, the lights on the boat have been turned off as there is hardly any Oil in the Engine, let alone the generator. That would mean no songs but that would also mean a dark lonely night amongst strange tribal men. We awaited some signs of our unit’s arrival , only the Art Van seemed to have made it to where we were . Ravi one of the set helpers was sleeping drunk next to it, the van driver who was thankfully awake led me out of the boat into the nearest house on the banks saying he would look after me , why don’t I spend the night at the headman’s house? One look inside and I decided against being cooped up as I have been all my life, as we all have been and walked back to the boat despite the driver’s warnings of
“Madam there are snakes in these parts that no one knows of and they come out only during the night”

It was way past 10.00pm now and since no one seemed to remember that I existed I decided to enjoy this silent night with a good night’s rest on the open deck, a proper rest that had been lacking during our regular shooting. Before I could voice my thoughts I was handed a pillow and chapa . I lay down glad to rest my back oblivious of what anyone might think of me. If this was the Ramayana I would have had to undergo AgniPariksha the next day. Not once did I doubt these hardworking men. With their worries to clear the heavy loan and the soon to be constructed Polavaram Dam they were only too happy to be a part of my ‘Godavari’ as I was happy to be a part of theirs, even if it was for a single night. I ate, drank , exchanged stories and slept among the people of this river and wished for another Medha Patkar in their midst.

I awoke to bright lights and mayhem. Mohan was back with carpenters and painters and their respective tools and they were creating havoc sawing, cutting, polishing wood to erect a set before daylight. He apologized for leaving me untended and I smiled wanly excusing him and hiding my delight. It was 2.00am , there goes my dream of a peaceful night. The incessant banging of the walls left me deaf . Our men worked very hard that night and did not sleep a wink , so when they had to tear down the set the next day because Vijay Sir the Camera Man did not like it I was close to tears but this is usual.

Our job was to provide what the director and the camera man needed and if they said NOT THIS, So be it!

They came about 6.00 am in the morning and saw and left shaking their heads. Not enough space for maneuvering the trolley, where would the lights go, could we push the wall we created a little to the back of the room so that would create an illusion of a bigger room? Plus this engine in the centre , could we………………
Oh! Well ! I took my cue from Mohan, who has done innumerable films and always sports a non committal look. Essential in film making. Being of the sensitive variety does not help. One was awake the whole night and was slogging to erect walls and create an imaginary bedroom but if that did not serve the purpose , you break it down , Immediately. The Tourist boat men were aghast. The bedroom needed to be “filled” some more Vijay Sir said after I showed him the what I had for the room. Could I manage a Rocking Chair for the grandmother, a bedlamp, a chest of drawers and maybe a few more wall hangings, one needed to “FILL the frame”.
Initially I took the job lightly, after all, with years of moving houses and setting them up from nothing, with nothing , my Mother had taught us girls the art of conjuring beauty with available and local materials. This would be easy I thought, Films I realized are not Living Rooms , Living Rooms are to be lived in while those in Films are populated for an instant , temporarily captured and forever embedded in the audience’s memory. I needed to make it more than subtle, almost Loud. Loudness is appalling but Vijay Sir knew his frames. At the least I was determined it should not look too made up, which spoils most Telugu Films. As a people we are simple but have the most atrocious sense of aesthetics when we deviate from simplicity .
Bed Lamp I could manage from the Rajamundhry shops, Rocking Chair-the driver promised to scout the nearby villages to get one for rent, Chest of Drawers? From my reconnaissance in the city I had not come across any which was affordable let alone rentable. A movie of this scope and scale would probably be allotted vast budgets for Art and Props you would think, but there is another perennial fight, that of Art and Finance!!

Why can’t you borrow that? And Rent this? And maybe convince him that he could be a little charitable?? Never talk of buying is the Producer’s motto but if you want a swanky new look you cannot achieve that with Begging and Borrowing. So every time Vijay Sir said why did you not get more of those chimes I’d have to say sorry even acquiring these was a test of my bargaining prowess!!! 
 


IDOL-WORSHIP:
Then there was the Goodness of the Godavari Residents. INDU , the “city mother” who ran a posh beauty parlour in the city- Radiance . Having lived in Jamshedpur prior marriage she knew enough Bengali to provide our heroine Komalinee Mukherjee with a conversing companion in Mother Tongue and some home made fish, apart from the Durga Pooja details and free Facials. Anytime I felt out of place with the filmy crowd, which happens often if you are used to lots of space and suddenly you are with 200 people everyday, I would seek refuge there. She was glad to speak Hindi with me and I was recipient of many a massage and manicure. Her assistants would be affectionate and brush away money from me as sacrilege.

She was a find, “ City Mother” is what Mani Gopal and Me called her as she was to play that part in the film and had been auditioned for it. Apart from being a National Level Golf Player , she was a wife and mother of two. Later with issues of time and hectic schedules she dropped out but my relationship with her endured. Mani in charge of casting had found me friend. She took me to an Ashram that she frequented, away from Rajamundhry near Korkonda and helped me acquire the Hanuman Statue in green that now adorns GVG gaaru’s SSC arts office. It is a beautiful Stone Idol , kneeling in reverence, a part of the quartet of Rama, Sita and Lakshmana . Commissioned by the local MLA but the sculptor parted company on the recommendation of Indu. We carried it back safely ensconced in the back seat of her car. I was apprehensive, it cost almost 2000 Rs and I was not sure if I had taken the right decision. Every Hanuman Bhakta who laid eyes on it from Soujanya , another AD, to the Launch Drivers they have all been desiring it.

Idols remind me of another frantic day before the ashram search. Gandhi and I had scoured the city for a decent set of Rama Durbar . Very essential to the storyline the idols would form a backdrop for most emotional scenes and conversations among the Hero, Heroine and the Grandmother. Rama, Sita and Lakshmana with Hanuman kneeling , head bowed in devotion. Sekhar wanted the statues in stone not the small sets available in Lepakshi in Sandalwood. We were told that the city outskirts housed a row of stone carvers who might have what we need. We hired an auto , ransacked the roadside stalls till we found what we needed, but as usual the price was too steep. There were statues in Marble, in Granite , in all kinds of unaffordable materials but this was within range. I had the money but would Sekhar approve, if he did would Vijay Sir approve?

Back in the auto with the sculptor and a sample Stone Ganesha we headed back to the hotel for a ‘yes’. Being constantly short of time we had but a few hours till the idols got polished and oiled and were ready for use . Before which we had to show them to the people who mattered. Sekhar loved them , especially the Ganesha and decided to keep it as a good omen. The Rama idols from then on have adorned the launch , where a pedestal was built for them, consecrated and decorated everyday with fresh flowers , kumkum , pasupu, agarbatti , a daily ritual of breaking coconut . It was decided after the shoot that these would be donated to an Ashram in Hyderabad.

The final Idol story is of my White Ganesha, this was just before Vinayaka Chathurthi and we were still shooting in the city, a boutique that was to be Sita’s was being shot. The city was amuck with Ganapthis. Shanties were spilling with the Elephant God in all shapes sizes. At the end of the Prenderghast road where it meets Minister’s were a few Rajasthani migrant sellers and we managed to acquire a relatively huge statue of 4 feet in white for less than 1000Rs. He stood solemnly on location till we completed our shoot in the boutique and was then transported in an auto to Prasad’s IMAX. The Heroine pays respect to him before embarking on her business plan and that was it, his role in the film. He later sat in the Amigos Office awaiting his fate. 


KNICK-KNACKS:
Coming back to chest of drawers that was urgently needed to fill Raji’s Cabin . Here I was without a change of clothes, no bath or wash while the plan was to go further up the river towards Papikondalu and stay there a night. Since Mohan was being sent to Rajamundhry to get the Bamboo Raft , I could go with him and buy the necessary items and head back to the Launch [ Lanchee in Telugu ] by evening. It was cutting it too fine as we were already at 9 am. We boarded a trailer truck, Mohan and myself in the front seat with the driver and headed on the bumpy track back to the ‘Main Road’. I had lunch at the Hotel , did the shopping list in a jiffy and was ready for the truck by 4 pm. Mohan called saying that the Bamboo Raft would take time to disassemble and load , so please wait for my call. Such an adrenalin rush and he says ‘wait’, surfed channels, recited some mantras, did yoga and now it was almost 7 pm, if we did not leave right away we would be taking unnecessary risks driving late into the night……………………

“Sorry Madam, the unit has already left the site and are midway between Singanapally and Paapikondalu, it would be difficult to catch them now…………..”
No choice now but to stay put, while the others , God knows what the others were doing. It is one thing to want to rest desperately while you are busy shooting and quite another where you are forced to rest while the rest of the unit is doing a night shoot , probably in some picturesque locale. The Chest of Drawers I hoped was needed the next day and not right away, it sat in the hotel reception area announcing its induction into “ Godavari”. This was actually a old fashioned Laundry Bin. Wow! Wood and all. When I saw it in the furniture store it seemed perfect for a bed stand, a corner stand, a mantelpiece even but a Laundry Bin? It was not your everyday flat rectangle shaped piece of furniture , it jutted out regally as a half hexagon with an upper and lower shelf , held by delicately carved knobs. Vijay Sir loved it the minute he saw it and as usual

“ Kavita gaaru only one?”
Budget. Budget. Budget.

Now the Bamboo Raft needs particular mention. Costing almost 40,000 Rs or more it is this on which most of the climax will take place, outpourings of love and unforeseen confessions will happen, it will trail the main Launch. A hut is to be constructed on the Raft, which will house the Washerman Family, another set of important characters for the film. This very Raft was now missing, just when the Launch was to set sail. Considering ‘Continuity’ is the main cause of worry for most filmmakers Anish was livid that this had not set sail from Rajamundhry already. Even if it did, it would take it 8 hours trying to sail upstream, what a painful situation. So off Mohan was sent to get it , come what may, maybe pack it in the trailer truck after separating the various pieces? That was how I happened to get a bath that day!
Finally when the Raft did arrive on location, it was host to a teary scene and a dance number and could not withstand the weight of stools, stands, lights, cots , extras , dogs and hens let alone a heroine and hero and kept sinking in parts. While one side would be inundated almost flooded, the men steering the launch would try to keep the Raft a safe distance and prevent it from hurtling straight into the Lanchee’s backside or toppling over. To get the lighting correct, the focus exact , the crane pulled to 40 feet, with the Cameraman hanging mid-air setting his frame, the Director catching it all on the monitor shouting instructions through his Mike, the make up intact, the lines memorized, the background just right and just when its is “ ACTION !” we hear “ TAAPA!” it is bad news. Taapa is what the boatmen this side of Andhra say to mean STOP. I am assuming that Stop got distorted to Top first and then to Topa to finally Taapa. Bad News. Taapa is Bad News, when we are all set to Go. Oh! Technical Error. Some things just cannot be under control.

Since I had to sleep over in Rajamundhry that night I thought of using my evening well at Indu’s or catch a movie on the telly but sleep overtook me by 9pm and I got up to the regular cellphone alarm of 3.30am, I was informed by Mohan that it would take him another day to deal with Raft Vs Money Vs Transport issue so would I mind traveling by the Production Van? No , I wouldn’t , anything to be back in business. By now I was worried that my purchases would go waste. Three sets of Bedspreads, sheets, pillow covers, lamps, curtains…………. The Production Van is what carries the food. Once to the location with the breakfast, then back again to replenish with Lunch, a third time for Dinner. The same van , the same people, the same road, but a different Menu each time. The contract to feed for a film is given to a particular Mess, and all Messes are of course members of the Mess Union. It’s a Mafia that’s what Film is.

ITS ALL FOR THE STOMACH!:
Ah! Food! Production Food! Despite the soda they put in their preparations and the obvious mixing of veg and non-veg and all the inevitable hygiene issues, I love it. I love the whole process, the calling of BREAK, the slow trudge to the seating area, a production hand will come by with water to wash your plate , again, lest you have any doubts about the general cleanliness and complain to the Manager , worse still, to the Mess Incharge. The boys will constantly serve you and once you are finished, you just leave your plate and walk off. Though there is a vast difference between what they feed the Director , the main leads and Us the rest of the populace in the quality of rice, availability of rotis, serving of fruits etc I have personally never felt any less privileged. To be fed morning , day and night and in between is a pleasure only those who have lived abroad and alone understand. A typical breakfast would be Idli and Coconut Chutney, Dosa and Sambar ,Vada, Upma and Tomato Pachadi, Pongal, Puri with Koora not to mention Tea, Coffee, Horlicks or Fruit Juice if you so desired. You can now imagine the Lunch and Dinner Menus!! Of course they are prepared Andhra style, Hot and Spicy. The paunch that I acquired from three months of outdoor shoot has yet to go away, all those who said “ Kavita , how do you keep yourself so thin” , Enjoy!!

Back to Production Van, a car came for me to the hotel to take me to the Mess. The Van was being plied with huge steel containers of Sambar, Chutney and other heavenly smelling items at 4 am!! I wondered at the cooks, did they start cooking at midnight? And what of all the cutting, how many helpers would you need and at what time to cut the beans so fine and grate coconut for a unit of 200 and more ? Impressed with what I saw I forgave them for not covering any of these containers, there were plates, glasses, cups and absolutely no room for me , despite being still in my thin phase . I am glad no one was traveling with me except the production boy to laugh at my contorted posture, thanks to Salwars I was not too compromised!
And then ? The van stopped abruptly at Singanapally Village refusing to go any further , time to alight and board “SITARAMANJENEYAM” a small boat meant to carry all this food to the unit as they were now inaccessible by road. Alright, do I have a choice at this point? What happened next was a pleasant experience that makes living worthwhile, just to have savoured that moment is enough. Lots of village children surrounded the Van, vying to take turns to grab the utensils and vessels and run along holding onto them tightly to the banks of the River Godavari, screaming and chanting “Godavari, Godavari” and helping load these onto the said boat, was it the film they meant, I’ll never know but the sight was beautiful to behold. It happened everyday apparently and I was lucky to catch it that day, but that day I did not enjoy my breakfast too much. I remembered the open containers, the unwashed hands of the kids , the dust, the pollution…………… by lunchtime only the smiles of the kids remained in memory and I could polish off the Pulusu with aplomb.

So here pre-breakfast, pre-lunch I was aloft the Boat surveying my environs , this too shall pass, literally under the POLAVARAM DAM. Sadness descends but the view is too pretty to get lost in solemnity. Enjoy while it lasts. The waters are a regal, vast swirling mass of liquid, browned with silt and sand, the rains have ensured this colour. Every now and then I see waste, spillage, plastic making its way through the reeds and rocks. The flora and fauna of this land has not been properly documented, butterflies flit past, I try identifying in vain. What is worse, to document and lose or to lose with no record of what we had lost forever to so called ‘development’? 


BED TIME TALES:
Three hours of silence except the rush of the river while it rained and I danced on top of the boat, three hours in which I forgot civilization and its demands, three hours to Ithaca. Joy, unadulterated. It is hard being a Heroine I muse, always watched, always scrutinized.

If I have wanted to be behind camera it is no surprise to myself, though others doubt my sincerity “ you can try your hand ………….at news reading……..?” I am beyond Heroineable Age see? The anonymity and the power of directing others to do your bidding pleases me. The platform to burst forth one’s pent up creativity be it dance, music, art, theatre. It is an amalgam is it not, a perfect combo of art and technology. Satisfying the commercial instincts of those involved in its making. A magic world, make belief, storyland of myth and fantasy, I grew up with one story every meal. Would not eat without a story, Katha was the way they bribed me. “Katha Chapthanu Kavi”, will tell you a story Kavi, is how they started negotiations. That was the currency that worked with me anytime.

I grew up then to telling stories myself, I convinced my sister for a long time that I was a ghost, “Puji main Bhoot hoon, tujhey lenay aaee hoon” I am ghost Puji, I have come to take you away,
“ Akka please sach bolna” Tell the truth Akka
“ Sach hai” Its True [in a very gruff voice]
“ Akkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkaaaaaaaaaaaaaa………………….Mummy……yyyyyyyyyyyyyyy……………………….!” she’d wail and ma would shoot me a very very dirty look of reprimand. She is your younger sister , how can you etc. But guess what , it helped her did it not? Now that my sister is a Writer, who is the Muse tell me? Who inculcated in her the love of Story and Drama and Enaction and Plot?? C’mon take a guess!! And all the ADs have told me their ‘concepts’ , a term industry people will use when they mean ‘story’ . I know what film Kiran , Mani or Soujanya will make, though personally I think Ravi’s story is the best, sorry Ravi’s Concept! I am a story magnet.
No, Of course no one knows my concept, my story, what I will make, I will not tell my story any other way except on film. 


Talking of telling a story, Our Hero and Heroine told a neat one and totally fooled Sekhar into submission with their acting. On Feb 3rd we were still not done with the song shoot, it was already 11.45 pm and we had hoped for an early Pack Up considering next day the 4th was Sekhar’s B’day. All hopes were dashed as we were still struggling with boats and sails, Nagra played “ Andangalayna” [ am I not beautiful ] while Komalinee in white crepe crooned to Sumanth , ie lip synched. The flood lights could have lit up a whole village , it was a strange contrast though ,this song on a Revvu [ Sand-Island in the midst of the river ] , the villagers from nearby who were fishermen or boatmen, me with a handycam, [ by now I was doing behind-the-scenes-shoot ] surreal if you please. I am told Sumanth wants to speak to me, apprehensive I approach him. What could be the nature of his call?
Nothing to worry he tells me, you have the Handycam, I have an idea.

Sekhar is busy discussing with Vijay Sir the placement of the Camera, Suddenly we hear Kom shouting at Sumanth “ How could you? I cannot believe you said this! I cannot work with you anymore………..” All eyes are on the lead pair now. Vijay Sir is slowly removing himself from the scene, he is afraid of what is to come, Sekhar is in disbelief , after so many months of shooting, this, now? We all knew they were good friends what happened? Kom leads Sumanth to a corner saying “ Come here I want to clear this once and for all……..” and next we hear is a tight slap! The whole unit is stunned, she slapped the Hero! Good God! This was our last schedule, we’d go home in another week. Of course I was capturing all this as instructed by Sumanth, who was chuckling gleefully that his ploy was working so well. Panning from the slap to Sekhar’s face I caught him open mouthed , then followed the burst of Happy Birthdays from the lead couple before someone took it too seriously , of course there was more to come with cake and candles but this practical joke was indeed memorable.

After he played his part Sumanth is back to his quiet self, this is the closest he has come to revealing his prankster side, apart from of course one day at the nets playing cricket, at all other times he’d retire the minute the shot is done to his room. No playing the fool, chatting, throwing weight about or fishing for attention. Most cooperative , I think Anish and I found him very likeable while others thought of him as aloof. Kom was of course a revelation, reading Ramayana on the sets or talking of Marquez it was not something I expected of an actress. Kamal meanwhile who plays second lead is an architect, an artiste who has done lovely paintings of our shoot, who has worked in the art department for Anukokunda Oka Roju [ a wonderful film from last year ] and now was acting in ours…..my favourite on the sets as I could speak easy with him, no qualms of what will people think etc a nice brotherly sorts and best part of all I found a wonderful dancing partner in him. Neetu was already a sought after Model in Mumbai before Sekhar spotted her on TV and contacted her for the film, the first time she came for the photo shoot to the office I was taken aback at how ‘normal’ she looked but once she was in front of the camera she almost seduced the camera ! Here again I found an actress reading , why did I assume that actresses are not literate or do not love reading? These are very intelligent women , very talented and hardworking, deserving every paisa they demand.

ULTIMATELY………….ITS THE PEOPLE:
The Costume Department was headed by Josh who is from NIFT helped by
Mohanty, his assistant-for a Telugu Film we did have our share of Bongs!
Josh is another buddy.He had a tough time trying to clothe two beautiful women , lest one think he was favouring the other………His travails were no less than mine, maybe more. The same Scouting, Bargaining, Purchasing of material , getting it stitched to size, getting it approved by not only Sekhar ,Vijaya Sir [ for colour and look of the frame ] but mainly by the artistes themselves. He needs to have extras of clothes used in fight scenes etc and also keep continuity of the jewelry and accessories especially for songs. He too has perpetual financial issues where the demand for quality far surpasses the given amount and we share sob stories while others run around giving dialogue or checking background or whatever their job entails. Josh helped me tremendously- in the Diary he provided for the Heroine, it is a lovely hand made, hand crafted work, in red and gold, embroidered cover of silk and cotton, Sita’s Diary is a visual prop that appears again and again in the film. Then of course her room had to indicate her being a textile designer. Josh being one, lent me his books, files, portfolio, paints, brushes, wall pieces, Batiks, Warlis you name it. He also lent Sita’s Bag which she carries throughout the film.

His assistant Mohanty is Dada to me. A perfect team member, a joy to have on a film set for the sheer presence of mind he possesses, innovative and sentimental. Whether I needed a bandage to be conjured from paper, or a porthole painted in Sita’s room, wall paintings of models for the boutique or a body form fitted with drapes I could count on him to bail me out. “ Dada, I need help” and he’d drop what he was doing and come to me. My connection with him is a Bengali one, having spent my early years in Bengal. Of course he told me his ‘concept’ too and I figure prominently in it!!! [ He is since then married and in Jamshedpur, have to congratulate him!]
Like this rain song “ Tappulu Tippulu” we were doing and I suddenly decided I needed to dance, sitting it out while the music was playing was killing me, I asked the Dance Master-Swarna Madam –if I could dance with the her dancers, she told me to learn the steps. So while I was practicing I hurt my sole by scrapping it against the iron on the deck and who but Dada should apply ointment and clean and dress my wound. I finally did not do this number but Swarna Madam asked me to do some Bharatnatyam for the title song “ Godavari” .This would be in silhouette which would mean I will be seen only as a black form but who cares, I got to wear my dance dress again and dance on the river bank in front of a temple! Wow! Just like in the movies!!! Sekhar and Anish were happy with my performance but DAYA my dance teacher who is Tamilian and very very exacting would not have been, it is something about Tamilians which makes them very disciplined and thorough, maybe it’s the daily dose of Rasam Sadam.

THE CHALLENGES:
One fine day Vijay Sir decides he needs PANDU MERAPAKAYALU -whole Red Chillies not yet dry but succulent and fiery in their redness to adorn the Restaurant Boat.
We had altogether 6 boats plying the waters simultaneously and this Restaurant Boat was one of them which we ‘cheated’ as the location for Pulatlu Area, PanArea, Restaurant Area, Statues Area, this very area was to be laden with Mirchis and they needed at least eight bagsful , this we get told at 8 pm in the evening for the next morning!

Mohan led his army of assistant into every possible nearby village and by next morning had acquired by every means of cajoling and coercion 8 bagsful of Mirchi as was desired, but what is this no one is pleased despite such apparent hardwork, everyone was making disgruntled noises. Apparently he had not got the correct colour of Mirchis, they needed something Brighter, Bigger, Redder, Fuller………….I conveyed the same to Mohan. He took one long exasperated sigh and explained that this was not the season for what was demanded of him, Come January or February he’d have what we desired in bucket loads, armed with this information I proceeded to tell the smirking lot that Sorry Folks! Just hindered by seasonal discrepancies nothing personal!!

Mohan was as exasperated with getting the Parrot. The “Chiluka” was a pet for “ChilukaVadu” who another character in the plot albeit a secondary one who reads out the fortune of a client via the expert services of his Parrot, who will pick out an appropriate card from a pile laid before him. And Parrots can bite too if they don’t take kindly to the showbiz world. First we shook heaven and earth to find one that could be with us for the entire shoot, how could we say when we might need him, all our outdoor shoots were weather dependent and suddenly it could rain, shower or pour. A genuine Fortune Teller with his parrot would be with us for the duration of the shoot, he would part with his pet while our own actor took over the parrot, cage and cards. The next day we needed him we could not get in touch with him. One assistant was sent to his house, woke up his family, the owner refused to budge since he was drunk, the parrot was proving very costly indeed. Finally another Parrot Man had to be found and hired. Soon the parrots took their revenge by biting every body who tried to meddle with their integrity and we finally used our First Aid Kit.

Meanwhile Mahipal, a helper had enough animals to look after, from a Goat that we needed to provide the rustic ambience of the Janta Boat , to the Chickens and Hens and Rooster , to the Dog that strayed and stayed put, Mahipal would feed all these , looking for grass and fodder. Till I got complaints that he was paying more attention to the animals and their welfare than to his work as a store keeper. Mahipal finally took the goat home for keeps after he grew so attached that he could not let it go.

Mahipal’s troubles started with the JANATA BOAT, this is the boat which traveled alongside the “ Godavari Launch” carrying regular merchandise that plied on these waters, Plantains, Coconuts, Tobacco , Cycles, Tyres, Tubes, Greens, Flowers, vegetables, Goats, Hens, People. He had to keep sprinkling water on the Greens and Flowers to maintain their freshness for the next day, ‘Continuity’ issue. He tried covering them with wet cloth, then finally he hit upon a brilliant idea. He took care of 2 or 3 baskets at the most at his store-house day in and night and left the rest to rot. When the shot was called he smartly covered the rot with these fresh flowers he had assiduously tended.

Mahipal funnily enough is the last person you’d credit with sensitivity, one night while we were getting ready for the BIG DAY next morning of Wedding Preparation shoot, he regaled me with his life story. He, it turned out, was an ex-Anna, in Telugu parlance it meant he was with the Naxalites. He was disowned by his family after his arrest and torture by the police and he showed me his burnt legs. How this helped him overcome fear and how he now wants to dedicate his life to well being of others. Cinema Field he said provided him with enough hard work and enough money to just about sustain him, all this while his cousin or uncle is an MLA somewhere………..phew! some stories are totally unexpected. Every time I think of Mahipal I think of my classmate by that name who is in the Army and told me similar gory stories of how he killed Kashmiri Militants. ‘Mahipal’ is Sanskrit for Caretaker of the Earth.

I bought him a shirt when I went to Vishakapatnam for purchases, he would wear it proudly like he did the hooded sweat shirt I gave him for winter from the US. He in turn brought every log, twig and dried palm leaf to light the Bonfire that I started every night during the mild February winter while we shot the song “ Andangalayna”, taking care to tell me who was stealing what props, who was behaving badly, who was gossiping about me , my very own Informer!

SEA-AHOY!
Vishakapatnam, On the Arabian Sea Coast, is about 6 hours if you take the public transport, a Red Bus that runs every half hour stopping at every town, village, gramam and Ooru enroute but if you have Kashi for a driver and a Tata Sumo you can make it in about 3 hours. The first time I went I took the Bus from the Rajamundhry Bust Station. I sat next to a Medico going home on vacation and we chatted about the glamour of films, she told me how desperate some of her juniors were to be in films, connected to it in any which way. I told her how disappointed my mother was when I did not do Medicine, especially when I gave up Biology altogether in 11th Std as I did not want to dissect animals. She offered to buy me biscuits and tea at Annavaram but she was still a student and in the Indian Travel Rule Book, an elder ALWAYS pays, especially if the elder is working(of course if there are men, women NEVER pay!)

I stayed at Shastry’s in Vizag ,who took me around all the lanes, bylanes and Shopping Hotspots till I found everything I needed. This angered Savaram no end as he was a friend from Washington who had just moved back to Vizag. Why wasn’t I staying at his place?

While my problem was how to travel back to Rajamundhry with all the stuff I had bought? Finally a car was engaged by Arvind , the Manager, to transport me and my purchases one way back to RJM. Once again there was no room for me. Modas , Stools, Pooja items, I had raided all the crafts shows that were in town. Among them a bed lamp, a Black and White Ship which plays up prominently as a prop in Sita’s Room. Shastry is a film buff and he came with me to RJM, hanging around, wanting something to do in the film. He is finally getting into Subhash Ghai’s “ Whistling Woods Academy” as a script writer , chosen amongst thousands all over the country. My right hand man and art collector, he helped me do up Raji’s Room with his Ravi Varma paintings. Of course he has told me his ‘story’ too, literally, having completed his first novel , he has made me his official editor/critic/mentor. It’s a lot of hard work mind you! Mine, not his.

The next visit to Vizag was to get Pottery, Ceramics, Corner pieces, Table Mats, Cutlery, Napkin Holders, Crockery for the Restaurant. I knew where to go exactly and even Kashi ended up buying something for his house, “ Madam I did not know Crafts Melas were so affordable!” I have a Male Covert!! So the second tryst in Vizag was with Savaram’s family. His mother had just retired from her job as a lecturer after three odd decades and his father too was at home. Lovely couple who fed me and smothered me with love and gifts. Kashi too got to stay at their place and was looked after. Savaram and I share AIR MILES! He goes every 6 months to DC and I come to India every few months, we cross each other, sometimes get to see each other, sometimes not but he again is one of those wonderful friends to have, who will go to any length to help you. Savaram and I met while volunteering for this wonderful organization www.aidindia.com which funds and works with grassroots projects in India. 


VASUDAIVA KUTUMBAKAM:
Lots of people have helped make the film in their own way, a gesture , a hand extended, a car ride, a stay at their house, a meal, a smile of encouragement. I have borrowed from all and sundry. When we needed Silver for Raji and Ravi’s engagement I approached Annam Sudarshan Uncle. He and his family are Goldsmiths for generations and Nalin’s very good friends.I told Uncle I needed to rent these items as buying them would be a waste , just for an hour’s shoot. He immediately picked the best kumkum bharani, panneeru buddi, a silver plate, some silver cups and glasses and gave it to me. “ All the Best, when is Nalin coming this side? How is you mother-in-law ?” The next week was a nightmare for me to keep these safe from greedy hands. I announced these were borrowed lest anyone assume they were our property. Thankfully I was able to keep my reputation intact with the Annam’s, I returned everything on time.

The driver Satyanarayana of our ambassador in RJM was equally helpful as were hosts of others who were working with us on a temporary basis, contract jobs and the like. He got to know that I wanted some Brass Pots for the wedding preparation scene in the boat and also some Saris , so he arranged for me to borrow them from his mother. It was so touching visiting his house , partaking of coffee and snacks while his wife searched for the said items in the attic. He would not hear of a payment but I sent his mother a sari that I received as a gift , a small token of appreciation for such a big gesture. These items remained with me for almost 21 days, then he took me to all the right places for mats and ropes and bamboo umbrellas and bargained with the locals, chiding them for taking me for a ride. Suddenly, there was an urgent need to get curtains made for Sita’s room, these had to be Bamboo Drapes that you could use as blinds. I was taken to these quarters where all the artisans resided and we laid an order for 4 curtains. These turned out to be another hit with the unit and I suspect they are adorning someone’s house this very moment!
Meanwhile every now and then I would land up at my house in Sainikpuri and announce:
“ I need a painting. I need a flower vase. I need 20 people for the Temple scene. I need a Fat girl and her mother. I need a Dance Teacher for Neetu. I need 12 couples for the Engagement ceremony. I need a photo of a young boy and girl in the nude. I need a picture of an elderly couple in black and white……….. also yes, a book on SITA, in Telugu preferably” Poor Ma would do everything in her capacity to fulfill my demands.

Fat girl at the temple is my cousin Kasturi who has just completed her Engineering in Electronics and Dance Teacher is my mother’s childhood friend Vasudha Aunty. She and Ma would write letters to each other during summer hols, that old fashioned kind of friendship, all sentiment and mush. Would do anything for friends, even act in a film! The photos were the tricky bit, imagine asking for nude photos from people-
“ Mee daggara mee pillalavi photos unnaya?” Do you have photos of your kids as kids?
“ unnayi” Hmmm, yes.
“ battalu laykunda?” Without Clothes?
“ What!!?@#%”
I knew the response so did not try this on anyone except Ma, she is resilient , with me for a daughter she has learnt to hear such outrageous requests. She did produce them within minutes!
Sekhar needed these pictures for Raji’s Room, to depict Raji and Sriram as children , who are cousins and extremely close , who probably saw each other everyday in all their vulnerabilities etc Mainly we had to establish this feeling of closeness:

An old picture in black and white-Wow-of my mother bathing a naked Anu with her brother looking on. They are children of another of my mother’s friends, Pattam aunty. Anu is happily married and does not know she will appear in the nude in this film. Another naked child, absolutely adorable, a boy , is my Seenu Bava, a second cousin. Currently in Italy hence I am safe! Were this the US, my mother would be booked for child pornography by now.

The old b/w picture of a couple in traditional telugu attire , hung in Sriram the Hero’s house is my venerable Tathayya and Ammamma. My mother’s parents . She was happy to have them share screen space with me .As for the book on Sita, guess what ? My mother’s brother-in-law, My Pedananna, happens to have written just that, a book on SITA, in Telugu! The hero and heroine are fighting over a packet of chips while lounging on the deck on easy chairs , and reading their respective books. I thought it would add some irony to the film if I could acquire a book titled SITA for SRIRAM. Which I did!! Not sure if anyone will even notice but these small tidbits make the whole venture more authentic. Kom was supposed to have gotten her book of RAMAYANA but she forgot and she was saddled with Classical Telugu Poetry which I was reading at that point.

If you are looking out for me, I sing “Rama Chakkani Seetaku…” at the temple with a few students, where Sita goes to worship with her mother. My music teacher in DC will be the happiest to see me in a teacher’s avatar, BHAVANA who has taught me for a few years has always felt I should be more confident about my voice. She is another talented Tamilian in my life, it must be the Thair Sadam. Among the students at the Temple are my cousin Radha and Janaki Attayya, my father’s sister. Everybody but my father. My father , him I could not accommodate. He is an actor of Shakesperean plays and while he did do Sekhar’s “Dollar Dreams” there was nothing worthwhile for him in this film.

The most amazing coincidence was finding Professor Sivaramakrishna at the first day Muhurath Shot. I see GVG gaaru, the producer standing next to a small made, slim, frail man and before I can say “ Prof” , they are chatting away happily. It so happens that Prof gaaru was HOD English at Osmania University. GVG gaaru studied under him and holds him in high esteem. So does my husband, Nalin, who credits his love of Naipaul to Prof saab and his years as Prof’s student as his most memorable. What a Wonderful World! I independent of Nalin knew Prof Sivaramakrishna and admired him for his scholarship. In my journalism days while I freelanced for Deccan Chronicle and the like, Prof Saab contacted me to cover an event at the Centre for Religious Studies, OU. I landed up enjoying the event so much that I volunteered to present a paper the next time! He helped with the material and I did a paper on Swami Jnanananda. Most Swamis give up secular life for the spiritual but this swami did the opposite, he became a nuclear physicist after he was a swami, very intriguing life story and philosophy.

One fine day after marriage Nalin says he needs to find an address in Nallakunta before leaving back to DC. I tell him , No Prob, Barkatpura, Nallakunta, Vidyanagar, OU, these are my childhood haunts. This is where I grew up, at my grandad’s place. I follow his directions and just near the Ramalayam I get a brainwave
“ Who are we visiting?”
“ No one you know”
“ Some old friend?”
“ Better, someone who still inspires me”
“ Would he be a Prof?”
“ Yes, How do you……….kn……..?”
“ SivaRamakrishnagaaru?”
He comes to a sudden halt. Looks at me,
“You have been reading my diary”
“No”
“ Impossible!”
So with that conclusion I took him to my Prof’s house which was also his Prof’s house and what a house. Wall to Wall lined with books, he comes out in his red robes of meditation looking calm as always and in control, brusque and to the point. He had given “ a few minutes” over the phone to his old student Nalin, we managed to sit for half hour, thanks to me.
“ What are you doing here Madam?”
“ Making a film sir.”
“ Impossible”
“ And you sir?”
“ GVG is my student”
“ Impossible!”
Well some things in life are meant to be.

This happens to me very often, running into people from the past, meeting some known person randomly at a bus stop, uncovering links that you would be surprised at………. 


WOH LAMHE…………..……………..KOI NA JAANE:
If you ask me for my most memorable days of the shoot I’d say my ride up the crane is one - it’s a 40 feet crane and I had been requesting Vijay Sir for sometime to let me go up on it. If he figures so prominently in these Musings , you now know why! He said “ Chooddam” which could be a brush off , pesky woman forget it or yes, we’ll see. I let it be, after all adventure is not what we came here for, it is just a byproduct. Suddenly one fine day when I had given up all hope, at Singanapaly , he says “ Meeru Velataara, Paiki?” Would you like to go up, Oh ! Sure but hopefully he did not mean it literally!

I sat on his seat, which he would occupy if there was a camera attached to the crane , and there was his focus puller next to me to give me company in case I developed vertigo, No chance, I loved every minute of it. Surveying the Godavari from so high with nothing to hold me to the seat, no belt, no rod, nothing, it was an unbearable lightness of being. I am doubly impressed now at what Vijaya Sir does from so high, just concentrating on the frame and the shot. Another was getting a dip in the Godavari, helped by Gandhi , or else I would have been washed off for the currents. The first day of the shoot after a long wait and it starts thundering, pouring, flooding. Frantic calls from home, “ are you all right?”

Of course, alright and having fun, Kom is called from the hotel to prance about in the rain, the weather is suddenly cold and we get to shiver and get wet and generally feel very proud. “We are filming in THIS kind of climate!”, “ Wait till you see the footage”

Some local boys jump of the main bridge, which in the next few days will be under water, we will be talked of in the press, our project will be delayed but at that moment we are dancing . I decide to take a dip on a whim but regretted the sudden decision as my skin being extra sensitive did not take kindly to the effluents and other detritus floating in the river , am still suffering the consequences. No, not just the paunch, I also have a skin issue thanks to Godavari!! 


PEN, DRIVES:
The only thing I got back from Rajamundhry was the Rathnam pen, not counting some linen and khadi suit pieces. My father, as soon as I mentioned the outdoor location said he needed one of them . As a child he said Rathnam pens were in vogue, he had used nothing but Rathnam . My grand-dad being a freedom fighter and all was a staunch follower of Gandhiji so when Gandhiji wrote a congratulatory letter to the Rathnam Brothers for having successfully replicated the Mont Blanc technology in India for the first time, on how small scale industries were the future of India, my tathayya immediately got my father one such pen. They were red those days, the body and the nib gold tipped, the care as complex. You had to keep the pens standing, wash them with water, never leave them with ink inside, NEVER change hands, etc etc So when Phani and Rahul of FIREFLY came down from Hyderabad for their Computer Graphics work on KOTI-the dog in the film, Phani, another pen buff and I set out to look for this historic shop. Walking the by-lanes eating Kulfi and Faluda, specialities here, we finally reached the store that was home to history and many a royal order. Looking at the dilapidated walls and the run down nature of the shop it was evident no such patronage existed now. The owner showed us pens of gold and silver with personalized names engraved on the nibs. We of course could not afford to buy those but ordered a few of the ‘simpler’ designs, these came with a copy of the letter Gandhiji wrote to the original Mr Rathnam. My father was maha-thrilled when he got the pen. Kamal is the only other person in the unit who thought these were worth a dekko and bought a few for gift giving.

It is interesting how I met the FIREFLY team. After making a short film, when I was looking to do the post-production, my sister suggested I call them up as she had acted in their “ My Beautiful Eyes” just a few months before. When I approached them I was taken aback at how freely they shared their knowledge , very non-filmy. I was given a crash course in film making - Hyderabadi Style, no holds barred sharing of resources ! FIREFLY has won an award for ANJI after I met them, for which I naturally take credit as being their lucky mascotJ Their place is an open house, anyone wanting to chat about films or work or throw their ideas or do some editing is always welcome. They don’t talk of money if you are a struggler, it is all goodwill, but they are very clear about their worth when it comes to big banners. So when I heard Anish calling some CG houses, I suggested they give FIREFLY a try.

Finding locations which are appropriate is exhilarating, not just the director everyone around ‘feels’ that such and such place is just right for such and such scene. Especially in the ‘smaller’ scenes. We hit jackpot with two such locations in the first schedule. The first was to be a boutique that Sita, the heroine owns and runs. The second was to be the Manager’s office in a Mall that Sita visits to sell her designs. Anish delegated the Boutique and the Manager’s Office search to me, this was still pre production days. We had a few options but Sekhar was not happy with any.

I had just ‘done’ two boutiques in Prenderghast Road and was in the auto when I saw this house with red mangalore tiles inside a compound selling-clothes! So right for our film, they even had their own weavers! We did it up with Mohanty’s paintings and new curtains and lots of plants and logs of wood lying outside. It was fun repainting the walls sitting through the night. Azra’s father though was unhappy with the semi-nude models adorning his daughter’s shop. Also it is against Islam to have human figures for decorative purposes, I told him we’d remove it in two days. Right after the shoot while I was peeling the posters off, he comes silently and gestures “ Let them be’!! The place is called STYLE HOUSE if you need to go and check out the paintings sometime.

After the shoot at the Boutique got under way, Mani calls me frantically and says he is running short of background people, so my cousin Sarvani comes to the rescue. She called from Shanghai the other day and enquired about the film. She is doing Medicine there and she says:
“ Ela chaysthavu akka, it is so boring?” How do you do it………..so boring!

Once this was okayed I needed to find the office space. This was a difficult one , we needed both a shop that also housed an office plus lots of room. For all the equipment remember? It was interesting to meet this couple from Jabalpur whose family deals in textiles, they had heard of Hyderabad and its rising fame as an emerging commercial centre and moved here 5 years ago. They sell silk saris from Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, They also design the silk into garments . Embroidery, Block Printing all kinds of embellishments you’d want………Sheer serendipity. Josh initially told me of a boutique next to it to check out, I saw that too, though impressive it was too small to shoot in so I walked into this store. They explained to me about Matka silk, about Moga Silk, about Ahimsa silk , how they retrieved the silk threads, the upshot was that Kom and Rathnam gaaru ended up buying some saris from here, while we had found our Manager’s office.

GHAR-JAMAI:
All this is fine, the location hunting and all, but if the owners suddenly realize that this is not what they had bargained for, you are in deep trouble. First they acquiesce to a film being shot on their premises solely on the assumption that they will make a pot of money along with some glitter and glamour thrown in , or maybe they are past retirement age , with children all flown West. Whatever the case maybe there has to be someone assuring them that their house will be looked after and all these people-are so many men necessary?- all of them have a job to do and are not interested in breaking your antique vases unless its an accident, for which, yes, we’ll compensate. But can you? This is a very expensive glass or marble or crystal………this was a gift! Oh! My God , you broke WHAT??? Do they have to use this bathroom, yes ma’am they too need to give vent to their natural impulses, but , but…………..can they use the other staircase from the backyard? How will they carry the heavy lights and equipment sir? That’s not my problem! There was even a case where the Hero had to request to get into the house, normally only the unit hands get treated so badly. This particular gentleman , whose house was haven as far as location for RAM’S HOUSE was concerned , refused to let anyone inside. Only I was allowed permission as a messenger, carrying requests and threats, back and forth. Like a Diplomat on a mission, I had to be on my best behaviour and Ma you should be proud of your training ! So if Rathnam gaaru had to put a Baby or Junior inside [ these are lights and not his children ] he would approach me with “ Kavita gaaru please ask Mr So and So if he could open the door just so, so that we can light the Grandmother’s face……….” If Mr So and So was unhappy that we had scratched his flooring, despite using black cloth and other precautions, he’d thunder,

“ Kavita, this is not what you promised!” Am I glad I did not sit the Civil Services, wanting to be a Diplomat is very different from experiencing the travails of being one.

Sekhar’s Elder Sister was everybody’s Akka , a great help when it came to finding people and in matching resources. If we had a scene full of playing children and crying infants , she had them a phone call away , her adda is PadmaraoNagar where she has helped deliver almost anyone under 20 years!! If we needed furniture she’d call Adrien and say “ Kavita will come to your furniture workshop and select what she needs…….”

It was amazing to get things done so quickly by phone. Should have listened to Ma and become a Doctor! There is so much respect. Which is one thing lacking if you are associated with Films, especially in my family. Apart from those who appeared in Godavari, as a favour to me, I have a large extended family which thinks films are not for ‘us’.
ALL IN THE FAMILY:
“ Look at Phanipriya,a Surgeon with lovely kids, in a joint family, happy and settled,two houses, a car and what not……….”

Cannot attend one family gathering without being pestered or told of Phani’s Beauty and Brains. Here I am away from husband, sharing room, living off unit food, no children, not working in an MNC (which I suppose would make things worthwhile), what was I thinking? Is this how decent women in our families behaved? The funniest thing is hardly anyone ever talks of my work in my extended family, as though it were a taboo thing I was indulging in and it would disappear if they failed to mention it.
“She was such a lovely child!”
“So Intelligent!”
“So much Potential!”
“So Creative!”
“So WELL BEHAVED” The panacea of all evils being socially acceptable behaviour.
“Evil Eye, that’s what gotten her!”

Somehow Intelligence, Creativity, Good Behaviour is not associated with Films.
I would have suffered from the same misconception but look at Kom or Neetu , Sumanth or Kamal, especially look at Sekhar. He is a saint on the sets. Always smiling and curling his hair with his fingers, pensive and lost in his world, serene in the face of impossible. Look at Anish, he is Sekhar’s Great Wall of China, every director should pray for a man like him as his friend and Executive Producer.

Tell that to my academic family, if you are not ‘studying’ something you are wasting time.
“ So when will you plan children with all this nonsense?”
“ Does Nalin approve?Your Mother-in-law, poor lady!”
This is my mother not some gossipy aunty.
“In the hot summer sun, do you need to do this?”
“ You could have been so comfortable in Washington DC”
My ever considerate father.

Listen Amma, Nanna, this is what I have been wanting to do since I was so high and it took me so long to get here, I am not going to let husband, children, m-i-l, careers in multinationals come in the way. Silence, Anger, Disappointment. Unbelievable, considering it is Nalin who is the most encouraging and co-operative. Telling me to keep faith and have confidence in myself. Giving me a pep talk every now and then.
I am treating my whole khandaan to Godavari this Sunday at Prasad’s, maybe they will have a change of mind?

PS: it was not all hunky dory, there were spats and fights and issues and gangs of ‘us’ vs ‘them’ but I did not think that would be of interest to you

 
 
 
 
(re-posting from another site, originally written in Oct 2006)