Writer-director Vivek Athreya, along with notable filmmakers like C Prem Kumar, Hemanth Rao and Christo Tomy was part of a screenwrites’ conference, held by The Indian Screenwriters Association (SWA) earlier this year. On the occasion, the Saripodhaa Sanivaaram filmmaker spoke about the dire need for writers in Telugu film industry, and why he feels jealous of Malayalam cinema for similar reasons. The video coverage of the event was uploaded on SWA's official channel today.
Addressing a question about writers’ status in current times, Vivek said, “A lot of writers are now turning towards direction, because they don’t get paid properly or don’t get due credits. I hope this changes someday.”
The filmmaker referred to the Malayalam film industry as a contrasting example, adding, “I genuinely feel jealous of Malayalam film industry. There are a lot of good writers there. I have seen for lot of films, like Kishkindha Kaandam. It has a different writer and director.” Christo Tomy, who made Ulluzhokku, was also present at the conference. He credited the presence of good writers to the exposure of literature in the state. "When I was in college, everyone used to read - and it wasn't just people who wanted to be filmmakers and writers. It's part of their daily life."
Further talking about how Telugu industries needs more writers, Vivek added, “I am looking for writers to collaborate with and bounce my ideas for. After 5-6 movies, we are short of ideas. We really dont know where we are going. To keep the chain going, we need to rely on writers. They have a great space now. However, there is lot of shortage of writers in Telugu industry.”
It is to be noted that Vivek Athreya, who began his directorial journey in 2017 with the film Mental Madhilo, has been the solo writer of all his films since, including Brochevaruvarura, Ante Sundaraniki and Saripodhaa Sanivaaram. The writer-director is reportedly planning his next project with Rajinikanth. According to few reports, the film is based on the story of an assassin.
