Muddy, the sports drama on mud race, was in the making for five years. The project is promoted as India’s first 4x4 race film. Ahead of the release, on December 10, the first-time director Dr Pragabhal shares that his craze for the sport pushed him to make a film on it.
The PhD holder in management studies has also taken a professional course in filmmaking. He reveals that he wanted to be the first Indian to make a film on mud race. “I browsed on the internet and found that no Indian filmmaker has attempted a film on mud race, and I decided to take the risk.”
The director has travelled with the story for several years. “It took 2 years for the lead actors along with a few other artistes to get trained in mud racing. We spent one year choosing the locations near the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border. Getting a clearance from all the government departments took me a few more months. Two years post the film went on floors, we are finally ready to present it to the audience,” he says.
Praghabal shares that the mud race is a risky sport. “I like the tough attitude of mud racers and I wanted to bring it out through my characters. Mud Race is a rare sport, and making a film on it is quite tricky. I want this film to be experienced by all kinds of audiences, irrespective of their language or the region. That is why we are releasing it in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and English,” he says.
Pragabhal wanted somebody with a strong technical background and chose Ravi Basrur to score the music. “Ravi Basrur decided to associate with the project after watching the rushes. He felt there was good scope for music,” says the director, adding, “Everything is realistic about Muddy. There are no computer graphics or body doubles used in the stunts. The film is a visual spectacle, and it will be quite an experience in theatres.”
The film stars Yuvan Krishna, Ridhaan Krishna, Amith Sivadas, Renji Panicker, and Anusha Suresh.