Kshanam Director – Ravikanth Perepu

Cinema, cinema and morecinema, is all that this film-maker ever dreams of. We talk to the director behind Kshanam to know his journey.

Born and brought up in Vizag, the dreamer has always wanted to make films. It was Maniratnam’s Sakhi that set him on this journey. So rigid was he in choosing films as a career that despite his parents refusing to let him go to film school, the chemical engineer would still write scripts in his free time. He was ready to quit studies and pursue his goal, except that his parents and Adivi Sesh insisted that he first complete his graduation.

Shifting to Hyderabad afterwards was a natural move for Ravikanth. Working post-production for KISS was all the training he’s ever had. Crediting Adivi Sesh for the story behind his debut film, Kshanam, he reveals that the duo together created the screenplay for Kshanam in 2 months. There were initial plans to make the film independently, but pitching it to PVP Cinema acquired them a shoestring budget.

“Casting unusual actors and getting their best performance has paid off for me.”, he says. Shooting for the film was a bitter-sweet struggle though, claims Ravikanth. The budget was a major constraint and they had to cut short the crew, make the best of resources while ensuring that they never compromised on quality. The response the film has gotten from the audience, his friends and even his parents was what made it worthwhile, he asserts.

When asked about his future plans, the filmmaker says that he plans to shoot at least a portion of every film he makes in Vizag. Mainstream films are not something he plans to venture into but he would like to make films of all genres except horror, “I won’t make or watch horror, it scares me” he says.