45 was fully pre-visualised before shoot: Arjun Janya

Kannada music composer Arjun Janya is making his directorial debut with 45 , starring Shivarajkumar, Upendra and Raj B Shetty. “I’ve drawn the story of 45 from my own life experiences, and also from being a fan of these three actors,” he says. Set over 45 days, the film carries deeply personal notes. He reveals, “During COVID, I lost my brother, and those emotions found their way into the story.”

Arjun credits Shivarajkumar for nudging him towards direction. “I initially narrated the story to Shiv anna with the idea of someone else directing it. He told me, ‘You know this story best, you should direct it yourself’,” he reveals. Having written, composed and directed the film, Arjun admits the process was demanding. “I wanted to be involved in every aspect of it. But it was physically exhausting,” he says. Determined to be fully prepared on set, the debut director says, “I made the entire film in animation before we began the shoot. I had no prior experience in direction and was working with three legends. I didn’t want to be unprepared in front of them, so every frame was pre-visualised,” he says, adding “Once we were on set, everything was clear.”


Casting Shivarajkumar and Upendra together also allowed Arjun to tap into nostalgia, which he subtly weaves into the film. However, Arjun says he isn’t chasing the ‘pan-Indian’ label. “I didn’t set out to make a pan-Indian film. It’s just a film. The audience can decide what it becomes,” he says. He remains deliberately vague about the genre. “It’s a ‘different’ film. That’s why I tell people to decide for themselves what genre it belongs to.”
Produced by Ramesh Reddy, 45 is slated for a theatrical release on Thursday, January 1





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