'Man of the Match is an experimental film’

Though larger-than-life characters, commercial flicks, and pan-India projects have become the rage, director D Satya Prakash vouches only for the content. The National award-winning director, who has carved a niche with films like Rama Rame Re and Ondalla Eradalla, is now back with his third outing. Titled Man of the Match, this will be the director’s  OTT debut. The film, backed by Puneeth Rajkumar’s PRK Production, will be out on Amazon Prime on May 5. Ahead of the film’s release, Satya Prakash talks to CE about the project.

“Man of the Match is an experimental film coming,” says Satya, who tells us that the subject is like ‘old wine’ because it was a story written a decade ago. “I felt I was too immature to take up the project back then. When I discussed this subject with others, everyone told me it was good but would be difficult to turn it into a film. We asked upcoming directors to make it but nobody was ready. After the first lockdown, I went to Puneeth and shared with him the one-liner of this story. Without a second thought, he said go ahead,” he says.

Satya Prakash’s previous two films were melodramatic and high on emotion. However, Man of the Match will be a conversational film. “The film discusses the current situation, mindset, and today’s greed. It basically mirrors today’s society and lifestyle. The film highlights technology’s dictatorship and how that has invaded everybody’s independence and freedom,”  says the director. He further adds, “Humans lose to two things we can’t see with our naked eyes - God and technology. The latter has only filled the world with negativity.”

The plot is about a film director (played by Nataraj S Bhat) who holds auditions for his upcoming film Man of the Match. The whole film is about his struggle which unfolds with a comical twist. The film also stars Dharmanna Kadur, Veena Sundar, Atharva Prakash, and Vasuki Vaibhav. “I have shot the film realistically without going by any formula. It is raw with and candid without conventional filmmaking techniques,” he says.

Satya says he believes in content-driven movies. “According to me, larger-than-life films can only give a temporary joy. But content-driven films will be valued in the long run. Not that I don’t like making larger-than-life commercial films. I will do them when I get an opportunity and when the time comes. Having said that, I never like to chase money and fame. I want to enjoy filmmaking and the excitement that comes with it.”