The first of many awards

Halfway down his engineering course, Hemanth Rao found his real love — filmmaking. After completing his studies, he assisted directors Girish Kasaravalli and Jacob Varghese in three Kannada films. Making a big entry in 2016 with his film Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu, Hemanth won the Gollapudi Srinivas Award for the best debut director. Creating a record for being the first Kannada director to be the recipient of the prestigious award (given in the memory of late director Gollapudi Srinivas), Hemanth feels overwhelmed!

Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu (translating to — wheatish complexion, average build) is a film that revolves around the life of an Alzheimer’s patient and his son. “I thought of doing this script since my college days. It involved a lot of research. I spoke to many Alzheimer’s patients, their families and doctors to ask what they go through” shares Hemanth.

Also donning the hat as the co-producer for Godhi Banna… Hemanth found it challenging to multitask. “It was tough to perform both roles, but Pushkar Mallikarjun (co-producer) helped me a lot. And the actors made my job easier.

They fit the roles written in the script, perfectly well. I imagined the faces of actors like Anant Nag, Rakshit Shetty and Shruti Hariharan to perform the roles and everyone accepted.”

Narrating more about the story, the director shares, “It is not just about the disease. There is always a little bit of friction between grown men and their fathers. The medium of communication is usually the mother. But when a father has Alzheimer’s and goes missing, the emotions of the son come out — the anxiety, fear and love become multifold altogether. That is what we have shown in the film!”

Stating that emotions are the most needed key aspect of films, Hemanth says, “Whatever be the strata of the community and the class, emotions are common to all. Everyone feels happy, sad or angry. The relevant stories with the right proportion of emotions become the most enjoyed films.”

When asked who his inspiration was, Hemanth answers, “Charlie Chaplin! He made films without language. Whatever tongue one speaks or whichever continent he is from, one can enjoy the film irrespective of any barrier. I also like Kannada director Rajkumar and the influential filmmaker Steven Spielberg.”

Talking about ethical filmmaking and freedom of art, Hemanth shares, “There is a thin line between the two. As a director I want to have freedom to experiment with my art. But one can’t be unethical in doing art. Art is ethical. As long as I can look into the mirror and say ‘I’ve done honest work’, I think it’s good!” He adds, “I don’t want to make films that give messages. If a moral is intended in the storyline and people change for the good, that’s great! But I don’t want to give advice to others because I’m not perfect. My stories are human-centric and relevant.”

His upcoming untitled venture which is expected to go on floors this September is about the life of a policeman and how he is viewed by the society. Thanking his Godhi Banna… cast and crew for the overall success, Hemanth concludes by saying, “This award is dedicated to them too as it is a collective effort.”