I like making sensible commercial films: Ratnaja

His debut Nenapirali drew rave reviews and bagged a host of awards, too. Honganasu, his next project, didn’t receive the same appreciation as his first.
And now, Ratnaja is back with his latest, Premism, starring Amulya and newbies Varun and Chetan. An engineer and a former KAS officer, Ratnaja says his passion for cinema brought him to the industry. “But I wanted to make films that appeal to my sensibility - clean, family-oriented stories,” he tells us.
But with Premism, he’s made an exception.“Like the title suggests, it’s a love story. But the story also has a lot of comic elements woven in. I hadn’t attempted this in my earlier films,” he says. The film deals with teenagers, and is a triangular love story. And while Varun plays a constable’s son, Chetan essays the role of a rich kid.
But it’s not your regular kind of love story. My screenplay has ensured that until the end the audience will not realise whom the heroine favours,” explains Ratnaja. He adds that Varun, trained under him, and has assisted him for three years, while Chetan has acted in a film called PUC. “And working with Ratnaja sir is a privilege,” say the boys.
Amulya, who plays the teeny bopper in most films, accepted the role because it suited her age. “Since I’m only 17, I can’t experiment too much with my roles. And I intend to cash in on that image to the fullest until I’m old enough to try other characters. Besides, I’m not someone who’ll expose on screen. So, I think playing the lover girl suits me perfectly,” she tells us.
Ratnaja chips in with the final word. “It’s not about the stars; it’s the script which always wins.”