'I am no champion of NRI causes'

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""><script language="javascript">doweshowbellyad=0; </script></span><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">Even though he has made three films after that, none of them has been the phenomenon that </span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">Hyderabad Blues</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> (</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">HB</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">) became.Six years after HB, 37-year-old filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor is back with HB-II Rearranged Marriage, which takes off from where the earlier one ended.</span><br /></div> <div align="left" style="position:relative; left: -3"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" align="left" border="1" width="28.0%"> <colgroup> <col width="100.0%" /> </colgroup> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal"><img src="/photo/758991.cms" alt="/photo/758991.cms" border="0" /></div> </td> </tr> </table></div> <div class="Normal"><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">Ask him why a sequel and Kukunoor immediately says it’s not an effort to c ash in on the success of the earlier film. “I just had a good story to tell. I thought I could go back to the story of Varun and Ashwini (the main characters),� he says.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">If </span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">HB</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> was about an NRI’s search for a partner, the sequel is about those relationships six years from then. “I am not a champion of NRI causes. </span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">HB</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> happened because I was in that phase of my life. This one also has elements of my life,� the director says. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">Rearranged Marriage</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> takes a look at relationships through the marriage of Varun and Ashwini, who have been married six years. Kukunoor himself plays Varun again, while Ashwini’s character will now be done by newcomer Jyoti Dogra. The rest of the cast remains unchanged. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">Even though </span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">Rearranged Marriage</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> has been made on a much larger scale – with a budget of a crore rupees, as opposed to </span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">HB</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">’s unbelievably modest 12 lakhs – it will have the same home video feel. “The camera remains static; there’s no makeup and the locations are real,� says the film’s producer Elahé Hiptoola.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">“Earlier it was due to a lack of budget, but this time the raw, earthy feel is deliberate,� she says. And why would </span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">Rearranged Marriage</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> work considering there has been a spate of similar films? Hiptoola says the film is no longer about NRIs, and there’s a dedicated audience for Kukunoor’s cinema. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="">“</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:="" font-style:="" italic="">Hyderabad Blues</span><span style="" font-family:="" arial="" font-size:=""> was a wonderfully breezy film. Plus, the timing was perfect,� she says. And now it’s time for an encore.</span></div> </div>