‘Thugs of Malgudi is only for Sudeep’

Thugs of Malgudi should have, ideally, gone on floors in June this year. There has been much expectation and speculation around this project, which was to be a Sudeep-starrer directed by Rakshit Shetty.

The filmmaker wanted to explore a unique subject, the life of a thug in the 19th Century pre-Independence India. Fans of both artistes were looking forward to this project, but prior commitments seem to have delayed this movie further. Latest reports have it that the project has been shelved.

But director Rakshit Shetty says he has not given up on it. “Thugs of Malgudi is meant for Sudeep and nobody else. If he doesn’t do it, I will keep the script aside and move on to something else,” says Rakshit, who is just wrapping up the script for his next, Avane Sriman Narayana. “It was a project I had committed to and I am taking a little more time on it because I want to make it interesting. Once that is done, I am going to finish writing the script for Thugs of Malgudi and I will take it forward,” he adds.

The filmmaker also has a reason for the delay. “After Ulidavaru Kandante was released, I was committed to five projects including Vaastu Prakara, Ricky, Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu, Kirik Party and now Avane Sriman Narayana,” he says. “I thought I would complete these films in two years and then start with Thugs. But my films took more time and it didn’t happen according to my plan. I had to make Sudeep sir wait for my projects to be completed, which I felt is not right,” he says, adding that it was a project he really wanted to started working on. “Some things are not in our control. However, I have decided that I will complete the script, even if the project does not take off. Once it is ready, it will be completely Sudeep’s call. Whenever he wants to start work on it, I will set the schedule for my other projects according to what he says. That’s what I have planned for now and will be discussing this with Sudeep.”