Ashwin Gangaraju: The time is now ripe for Aakashavaani

Debutant director Ashwin Gangaraju feels the need to grow beyond film schools

Ashwin Gangaraju

Aakashavaani is generating a lot of interest in the Telugu film industry because of its producer and director. While S S Rajamouli’s son Karthikeya is the producer, Ashwin Gangaraju, a product of the Ramanaidu film school debuts as the director. In fact, 90 per cent of the film’s cast are newcomers. Ashwin chooses his words carefully while talking about the film; says he cannot reveal much.

The film, Ashwin says, was shot in Paderu, Visakhapatnam. A village set was erected on the slopes with rain often playing spoilsport. The pepper and coffee plantations in the area were used extensively for the shoot. “We stayed at Paderu, half hour away from location. Things move slow there. What would take five minutes in Hyderabad would take two days in Vizag. We spent 55 days there for the shoot. We planned well which is why we finished shoot on time sans wastage,” says Ashwin.

Ashwin is a fine example of how film schools benefit aspiring filmmakers. A Kadapa native, Ashwin completed his engineering and was getting comfortable with his job in the software industry when his increasing inclination towards film direction and screenplay writing drove him to quit his job and seek admission at Ramanaidu Film School. Thereafter, it was a swift rise; he secured a scholarship and was handpicked by Rajamouli during his second semester after which he was moved as an assistant director for

Eega and

Baahubali . He shares that the film school is definitely of help to people wanting to work in the industry. “For those who came with absolute nil knowledge, the film school helped theoretically and fine-tuned the structural knowledge as well.” But filmmaking is hard work, he is quick to caution, adding , “What we learn in the school is writing a structure but how you apply the theory to filmmaking is individual perspective. When you actually see how a film is made you unlearn everything.”

Filmmaking

Had it not been for Rajamouli’s team he would have made short films first to gain an entry into the industry, says Ashwin. He recollects, “After Baahubali , I wanted to make a film, because producers kept asking me if I had stories. I wrote Aakashavaani during the making of Eega but at that time commercial films were trending and people said this won’t work, so I feel the time is now ripe for Aakashavaani .”

Aswhin wants to be known as an action film director, and looks to Spielberg’s films for inspiration.He says we don’t have action genre in Telugu movieswe jusy fake it. He adds, “We have four fights in a family drama and we call it an action film.

Garudavega is the only film I can think of that stuck to a genre. For me, a film has to be loud, big and not real. It should be something you don’t see outside. I like to see

Pelli Choopulu but when I make a film, it should be different.”

We ask Aswhin if he was taught budgeting, marketing and promotion in film school. No, there was a mention once in a while but never a chapter on it. He concludes, “That perspective was never put into our mind. You shouldn’t think of money when you focus on writing. The film school I am heading to now has an MBA, maybe they have separate sessions on marketing, constraints, budgeting. We shall understand all this only when we get into films, but while at the institute it all seems vague.”