Everything fell into place for Tillu Square, reveals director Mallik Ram
Young director Mallik Ram is on a new high after the massive success of his latest film 'Tillu Square'. He explains why he has perfect wavelength with actor Siddu Jonnalagadda and how the movie set was more of a friendly hangout. The latest Tolly sensation also hints at continuing the popular franchise with 'Tillu Qube'. The man of the hour in an exclusive chit chat with Deccan Chronicle.
Q. Are you on a new high with the massive success of Tillu Square?
It feels great because we have been trying to get here for a very long time. More than box office figures, we are happy to be associated with a super hit. The audience is loving our work and everybody wants some kind of validation at some point. We are receiving a pat for our writing, visuals, above all scoring over ‘DJ Tillu’ in comparison. There are so many reasons to be happy about the project.
Q: Were you under pressure doing the sequel as DJ Tillu was a huge success?
Initially, there was a bit of pressure as people were talking so much about DJ Tillu. Siddhu and I consciously avoided any kind of conversations around that. We didn't want it to affect our brains while trying to explore an interesting plot for the sequel. Thereafter, we began weaving a screenplay and it turned out to be good and engaging too after burning the midnight oil for many days. To avoid comparisons, we wanted to make a fresh project with a good screenplay and matching dialogues. Now, people are hailing the film dubbing it as being much better and funnier than DJ Tillu. As a director, I am happy to be part of making the way for something bigger than just a standalone film.
Q Is there a chance for another Part 3?
While we were writing, somewhere midway through the shoot of ‘Tillu Square,’ we had a couple of ideas about part 3 as well. Because DJ Tillu is a very lovable character and such characters rarely crop up in a writer’s mind. Also the audience lapped him up and made it a brand of sorts. We are certainly going to make another part and it will be called ‘Tillu Cube.’ We want to promote him as a superhero. A guy who doesn’t want super powers although he's been blessed with that. But by using them, he creates a mess of a situation around him. We want to create funny scenarios around it.
Q. How was it working with Siddu Jonnalagadda?
Siddu has been my friend for a long time. So, we got into the job right away because we had met several times at parties. We have mutual friends and both of us have been following each other's works. And then DJ Tillu happened for him and Adbutham for me. Both of us scored a hit and wanted to collaborate on a project immediately and our sensibilities matched. I knew other crew members too. So it was more like friends hanging out and having fun together.
Q: Anupama was a revelation in a bold avatar and surprised everyone?
We wanted to make her play something very contrasting to the roles she has already portrayed. She plays a villain in the film and we can never imagine Anupama could do it. Even though we considered other heroines, we thought Anupama fit the bill. She was taken aback initially, but when she heard through the parts of why she's acting bold like dressing up in a way she never did or indulging in lip locks, where meant to trap this guy to achieve a bigger mission, she was game. She was experimenting and trying something different and it paid off.
Q. Your next would be Tillu Cube or any other project in the pipeline?
Not Tillu Cube at the moment. Siddu has already joined the shoot of his next while I have to complete another big film which I will be announcing soon. I may be collaborating with Netflix for a web show and another theatrical film. So after these projects, if Siddu and I want to collaborate again, then we will do it.
