Audiences will see Imran as director and choreographer in Uppu Huli Khara

Imran Sardhariya, is, no doubt, one of the most popular choreographers in Sandalwood, having worked with pretty much everyone in the industry. But apart from making stars dance, he also realized that there was a storyteller within him and since he had the avenue to explore that he turned director with

Endendigu

a couple of years ago.
“After being a choreographer for more than a decade, I was looking for something new to do. But since I don’t know anything apart from cinema, I figured that direction could be what I was looking for. I got the opportunity, but it did not connect with audiences the way I hoped it would. Yes, it was appreciated because of the thought conveyed in the story, but people missed Imran the choreographer. I had focused too much on the subject and the characters, than the staple elements of entertainment like songs, dance and action. Overall, it lacked packaging and that is something I wanted to remedy with

Uppu Huli Khara

(UHK),” says Imran.
While he has no regrets about Endendigu, the filmmaker adds that it was a learning curve. “Every person learns from their mistakes, so did I, and I was hell bent on ensuring that I do not repeat them in UHK,” says Imran.
Imran adds, “As a maker you need to understand what the audience wants, which can be tricky, as there is no set formula to filmmaking. Today they may like a story high on content, and tomorrow a very normal subject maybe appreciated. Audiences are really unpredictable. I realized that I first needed to find a subject that convinces me as a member of the audience, than a filmmaker. Once that happens, it is easy for me to convince a producer to invest in the project and get cast and crew onboard happily.”
The challenge therein was to create characters that the audience could relate to at some level. “There are about eight main characters in the film, including the six youngsters — Sharath, Shashi Devraj, Dhanu Dj, Anushree, Jayashree and Masha — as well as

Malashree

and Aporup Acharya, for whom I had to come up with specific character traits, story arcs and lines, all of which would cumulatively work out in the larger scheme of things. Sharath and Dhanu have been working with me for years, while I have collaborated with

Anushree

on various stage shows, so it was easy for me to create characters based on their strengths. With Jayashree, for instance, it was an episode of Bigg Boss that convinced me that I could write a very bold character for her,” explains Imran.
Having worked with stars, Imran had the option of making UHK with established names, but he went against that. “Like most other filmmakers, my dream is to work with stars, but I also realize that the subject has to do justice to their image and audience expectations. For this story, I needed fresh faces, so that audiences do not come into the theatre with set expectations,” he says. The director adds that he set out to make UHK with only one thought on mind — everyone faces issues in their lives at some point or the other, but how they face it is always different. Some may overlook it and hope it tides over, while others find ways to get out of it. A select few will gather the courage to take it on head on and that’s what the characters of the film do as well. “In a nutshell, though, it is a dark comedy, which will appeal to all audiences,” he signs off.