Once Upon a Time in Jamaligudda is based on my real-life experience: Director Kushal Gowda

Once Upon a Time in Jamaligudda director Kushal Gowda asserts that his film will not be a typical film for Dhananjay. The journalist-turned-director, who made his debut with Kannadakkaagi Ondannu Otti, has based his sophomore film around an incident he witnessed in a spa.

Talking about it, Kushal says, “The incident I went through was in 2016 when my friend took me to a spa. The silent atmosphere, the dingy lights, the Buddha statue, the retro songs, and the different lit candles transported me to a different world, and made me uncomfortable. This feeling is the base for Once Upon a Time in Jamaligudda, which is also a journey-based film.”

Although the incident took place in 2016, the film is set in the 1990s. “I wanted to tell an emotional story, which I thought is best explained during the 90s period when we didn’t have so many gadgets to connect people. Since I am also a photographer, I have set the film in Malanad, which is one of my favourite places in Karnataka, and I have placed this incident in Gokarna,” he says.  

Kushal says that his experience as a journalist and his reading habit is what contributed to him becoming a director. “I’m a good singer, and that got me into writing lyrics. I’m glad that my talents are getting a larger canvas in cinema,” says the filmmaker, who expresses elation in collaborating with a fine actor like Dhananjay. “I liked his performance in Raate, which I believe is one of his career-best acts.”

Apart from Dhananjay, Once Upon a Time in Jamaligudda also stars Aditi Prabhudeva, Yash Shetty, Prakash Belawadi, child artistes Praanya, Bhavana Ramanna, and Triveni, Nandagopal in the cast.

With Karthik and Harish Komme handling the cinematography and editing, respectively, the film’s songs are composed by Arjun Janya, and the background score is by Anoop Seelin.