Raj R: I have received more acclaim than I deserve

After 8 AM Metro, which was for a niche audience, I thought I will probably not make a film again, and go back to my programming work. Just then, I met Bharadwaj Rangavajjula, a journalist friend who told me about the 1993 Chilakaluripet bus burning incident. Of course, I knew about the incident during my college years, but I also looked at things in binary back then. Now I can see how flawed I was. If you look at the stories of Valmiki and Angulimala, there is acceptance, repentance, guilt, reform, and redemption. While the Chilakaluripet incident had a humane element, I wasn't sure if I could redeem the accused.

Co-incidentally, another friend told me about the 1991 Tsunduru mass killings, where the accused had the intent to kill. While it didn’t fit in the screenplay structure by itself, I thought, ‘why not mix the two events?’ Then we had a story.

Let’s say, there is 10 per cent of the narrative, which forms the backstory. It is interspersed with the Chilakaluripet incident, only to provide a contrast to the present timeline. 

Surely, it’s one of the factors in the film. But when you watch the film, we are not harping on it too much. The emotional relationship between the leads, their love story is the main theme of 23. There is no huge emphasis on caste, but since it does play a part in the story, we felt the need to underline it in trailer too.

While an independent film, 23 is mounted on a big scale in its own ways. When it came to music and locations, we didn’t compromise at all. We spent a lot of money on the same. But yes, the filmmaking style is still independent. It doesn’t come from a studio, the actors are new — so that way, it falls within the purview of an independent film.

(Laughs) Absolutely not. I had clarity about two things — One, I will lose money without known actors. My own previous experiences had taught me that; I was not able to convince more people to watch 8 AM Metro even with Saiyyami (Kher) and Gulshan Devaiah. Secondly, one needs at least a decade of camera-facing experience to pull off a role like this. These are characters with 30 years of journey, and only 3-4 actors have successfully done it, Kamal Haasan for example. 

But I genuinely believe casting Teja and Tanmai was a lottery for them as well as me. Initially, I was sure they wouldn’t do justice to these roles. It was like setting them for failure. I decided to do one schedule first, and kept open the possibility that I would either abandon the project or cast someone better. In fact, I kept my leads in the loop to. It took just three days to be convinced of Tanmai. She is just something else. With Teja, it took a few more days to get in rhythm, but he had extremely good attitude. I knew I could make him work.

I understand audience often comes with mental block about subjects like caste. When I was in college, I myself would often think, ‘Enough of this preaching’ while watching such films. These blocks are tough to break. But if people come with an open mind, they will not be disappointed.

But it’s partly why I felt motivated to make this film — because how everyone warned me about these challenges; how nobody would come to theatres to watch these films. When I made Mallesham, I made it for young students who failed 10th or 12th std. I wanted to tell the story of a 6th fail student who went on to be awarded the Padmashri, to convey that there is so much more to life. And even if there isn’t, there is no harm in failing and trying again. 

Then COVID happened. Everyone panicked to some degree, and we got a glimpse of what mental health issues people were going through. Out of this phase came 8 AM Metro. It was for people who like books, poetry, slow narration and conversations. It was the result of 2 years of research, where I spoke to many psychiatrists, psychologists, and friends who were going through the same. I feel mental health is a sensitive topic — you have to either capture it well, or not attempt at all; otherwise, you would be damaging the cause. I think people appreciated that someone told this story without stereotyping or patronising them, with balance and nuanced sensitivities. If I could reach out to even 5-10 % of the audience with this approach, I am successful. 

Ofcourse a wider audience is better, but you first got to figure out which is your target audience. In my head, the target audience for 23 is young kids in the 13-25 age group. Why? I know I have made some mistakes in my college days, which make me cringe when I think of them. There is no justification for them. But now, I can directly identify with anyone who makes a mistake. 23 is about these people and their mistakes.

If 23 reaches a few people here and there, it’s good enough for me. Unless some other nicer idea desperately hits me, I am content in terms of my film-making career. I have no idea for a next film. I have no big ambitions to make another 10 films. I have got more acclaim than I deserved.

I got lucky with that film. Initially, no OTT platform bought it. Then Zee5 casually put it on their platform, then it came on YouTube. But a few people watched it, liked it, and pushed it on Instagram — it grew purely on word-of-mouth. However, that took 1.5-2 years. Yet, I am happy. Ofcourse if a film recovers its budget, you will be happier. But when a film reaches its intended audience, and brings them a lot of satisfaction, the primary purpose of making a movie is served.