Katheyondu Shuruvagide is a bonus for me

He was raised in a Kannadiga household in Kasaragodu, educated in Mangaluru and Australia, and worked in the US and Middle East, but the one thing that this former business analyst wanted to do was make at least one film. Senna Hegde got to do that with the 2016

Malayalam

film 0-41*, which he made on a shoestring budget of `7 lakh. This is why he calls Katheyondu Shuruvagide — his first theatrical release — a bonus.

How did this movie happen to you?
Among those who liked the trailer of 0-41* were Anurag Kashyap and Rakshit Shetty. I was one of the script consultants on Ulidavaru Kandanthe, so Rakshit and I would keep exchanging ideas through the years. I was working abroad then, but returned in 2014 after my father passed away. I got to make my dream of making a film come true with 0-41*. After watching the trailer, Rakshit said that I had to make a Kannada film. When he heard the story of Katheyondu Shuruvagide, he loved it and said that he would produce it. I only had

Diganth

in mind for the lead and he was onboard 10 minutes into the narration. Pushkar (Mallikarujunaiah) came onboard soon after.

You studied engineering and were a business analyst. How did films feature in the scheme of things?
Since I was a child, the only thing that really interested me was movies. My goal was to make at least one movie in my lifetime. The other things that I did were just jobs, and it didn’t really matter if I didn’t do them the next day. But those jobs brought me to where I am today, so I can’t complain. Since I got to make a film with 0-41*, the chance to make Katheyondu Shuruvagide felt like a bonus.



The film is set in a coastal area. Did your childhood influence that?
The coast was essential to me, because I grew up there. When I was writing the script of Katheyondu Shuruvagide, it seemed natural for me to base the story in coastal areas. There are a lot of real-life inspirations in the film — either mine or my friends. The main character runs a resort, so I had a choice of either basing it in the mountains or by the beach, and I’m always drawn to the beach.

This is a conversational film. Where did that idea come from?
I adore the kind of films that Richard Linklater Cameron Crowe make, because they are character-driven and conversational. I initially wanted to make Katheyondu Shuruvagide between two characters — a conversation between two strangers, meeting in an odd place, both lost souls, whose conversations develop into meaningful relationships. I later added other characters to add joy, humour and other emotions to the journey of the two main characters.

You set out to make one movie, now you’ve made two. What’s next?
I’m quite lazy, so for me, it’s only one movie at a time. I believe that a director is only as good as his last film. So, if Katheyondu Shuruvagide works, a few more opportunities will come along; if not, then it’s back to square one, and I will see what needs to be done. I’m content with my life, and I know that regardless of how my films fare, my dog will still come up to me and lick me the next day (laughs).