Careful pre-production helped create the world of ‘Karthikeya 2’ on a limited budget, says production designer Sahi Suresh
Careful pre-production helped create the world of ‘Karthikeya 2’ on a limited budget, says production designer Sahi Suresh
Art director and production designer, Sahi Suresh, like many other technicians in the film industry, remains mostly an unsung hero. He has completed a decade in Telugu cinema and talks with pride about his recent film Kartikeya 2, During this interview in Hyderabad , “Stories inspired by history and mythology give us room to do something worthy of attention. After the period film glass (2015), Kartikeya 2 I’ve been recognized.”
sleeper hit
producer of Kartikeya 2 The film is claimed to have grossed over ₹75 crore worldwide since its release on August 13. whereas Pushpa – Uday And RRR There were big ticket projects that attracted the attention of audiences nationwide, Kartikeya 2 A very short film that has found success with a mix of history and folklore. in a situation that can be compared to The Da Vinci Code In an Indian setting, a curious turn of events leads the lead actors in search of Lord Krishna’s anklets, looking for codes and clues along the way.
When he collaborated with director Chandu Mondeti and cinematographer Karthik Ghattamaneni Kartikeya: (2015), he remembers that they were all on a learning curve. “It was a film made with a small budget. As a group of cinema enthusiasts, all of us in the technical team did our best to set the backdrop of the thriller against a temple town to be different and different. ,
He regrouped for Kartikeya 2 in the middle of 2020. He says he had a better budget this time, but it was still challenging, as the scale got bigger. Apart from cinematography, Karthik also took over the responsibility of editing. Suresh worked with a core team of eight to 10 in the production design and around 100 people were involved in the construction of the set.
Sahi Suresh (in red) and Chandu Mondeti on the sets of ‘Karthikeya 2’. photo credit: special arrangement
the story of Kartikeya 2 Located in various cities including Hyderabad, Dwarka, Bayt Dwarka, Govardhangiri, Bundelkhand, Mathura, Radha Kund and the snow-capped peaks of Himachal Pradesh. Suresh tells that the technical team had their work cut out. “We did extensive pre-production. All the technicians had a clear idea of what was needed for each shot. We did a location recce, took photographic references to architecture, watched videos on history, archeology and related topics, and planned what we needed to shoot in live locations, what could be done on set and the extent to which we could use visual effects. You can use. ,
The team worked on the project during the pandemic, pausing during the lockdown, during which they worked on postproduction for the footage they had filmed until then. Suresh says that considering the pandemic situation and budget, it was not possible for the entire crew to travel and stay for long periods in different cities. “So we shot a few scenes on location, recreating the same atmosphere in sets set at Ramoji Film City and Padmalaya Studios in Hyderabad. I think we made 16 or 17 sets in total. The producers (Abhishek Agarwal, TG Vishwa Prasad and Vivek Kuchibotla) didn’t hesitate to spend on what is required for the story. Even if we needed the set for just one scene, they allowed us to go ahead. ,
One of the Caves | photo credit: special arrangement
The climax inside the caves was shot on specially constructed sets. As for the sequence in which lead actors Nikhil Siddhartha and Anupama Parameswaran drive vehicles on thin ice, Suresh revealed that it was a mix of live footage as well as miniatures: “We managed to make it authentic and real. It was good teamwork. Some of my assistants could hardly sleep for two or three hours a day.”
Suresh revealed that parts of Himachal were also shot in Hyderabad with the help of the visual effects team.
A temple set built for the film. photo credit: special arrangement
SS Rajamouli RRR Set a new benchmark for cinematography and visual effects. Suresh says it is possible to deliver technically sound projects for very low budget films, if there is enough time for planning and pre-production.
Suresh hails from Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, and made his debut as an art director with the Ravi Teja-starrer curious (2012). He said, ‘I have worked in more than 40 films till now. To survive in this industry, one needs to keep up to date with technological advancements,” he says, and opts for genre-bending thrillers, Fear and NTR’s biopic ( NTR: Kathanayakudu, NTR: Mahanayakudu) among his notable projects.
an internal set | photo credit: special arrangement
Her next film is the soon-to-be-released romantic drama, Aa Ammayi Gurinchi Miku Cheppali, Directed by Ingraganti Mohanakrishna. Kartikeya 3 running too. Due to the overwhelming response to Kartikeya 2Exclusively the Hindi-dubbed version, Suresh says there is an additional responsibility on the team to make the next film even better.