Location Diaries: Naveen Chandra — A spine-chilling adventure

Naveen Chandra, who will next be seen in Prime Video’s Inspector Rishi, elaborates how filming for the web series turned out to be more of an adventure than work.

“We shot for for this psychological horror-thriller in several dense forests. It was a tough shoot for everyone. When I read the script, I knew this series would bring me out of my comfort zone. Even though I struggled to squeeze in dates at the time, I said yes immediately,” says Naveen Chandra.

The cast and crew of the series shot in the forests of Talakona and Munnar for nearly two months. “It was freezing cold in Munnar. We shot from September till December during the peak rainy season. Everyone kept falling ill from time-to-time, but we battled the weather and kept on shooting.”

Naveen was inspired by the energy of the cast and crew members, a large number of whom were women. “Apart from director Nandini JS, and actors Sunaina, Malini and Harini, we had seven other women crew members in the team. This was my first project with such an extensive women crew and I was in awe and moved by their passion for work in the harshest of terrains.”

One of the challenges that the team faced was climbing a mountain for two hours to reach the shooting location in Munnar. “After pack-up, we all would trudge down the hills for another two hours in that rainy weather. There was no toilet facilities for anyone. We shot mostly at night in unfamiliar landscapes which were unpredictable as we wouldn’t know when any crisis would come up." The second layer of challenge was to deal with leeches.

“In the Talakona forests, there were leeches everywhere. We carried kilos of salt to spread on the ground, so that the leeches would not come up to the surface and harm us. This continued for several weeks. Despite these, it was inspiring to see every member of the team working with full dedication and no complaints.”

The crew moved to Chennai for one part of the shoot. But there was no relief from unforgiving weather conditions there either. “After rains in the jungles, we shot in the peak of summer on a huge set, which was designed like an underground mine. Every day, at the end of the shoot, I would go back covered completely in black soot! There were also many scenes shot with VFX, which were testing.”

Naveen, who is all praise for director Nandini JS, says, “From a big scar on my face right down to my raw look and costume, every detail she provided helped me get into the skin of my character. I think Inspector Rishi ranks amongst my best looks. Nandini is one of the best directors I’ve worked with. I’m both proud and grateful that the worldwide reach she gets through this, will bring her the credit she deserves.”