Boys Hostel, the Telugu dubbed version of the Kannada blockbuster Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare, is all set to release in theaters this Saturday. Written and directed by debutant Nithin Krishnamurthy, the movie features Prajwal BP, Manjunath Nayaka, Rakesh Rajkumar, Srivatsa, and Tejas Jayanna Urs in significant roles. Chai Bisket Films and Annapurna Studios are collaboratively bringing this Kannada blockbuster to Telugu audiences. Supriya Yarlagadda, one of the producers of Boys Hostel, interacted with the media today, and here is the transcript.
When you have the potential to make straight films, what made you bring this Kannada film to the Telugu audiences?
Firstly it is a good film. Even though the film is made in another language, Telugu audiences are the best when it comes to owning movies. Our audiences watch films across languages without any bias and enjoy them thoroughly.
What difference do you observe between promoting a film produced by you and releasing a film made in another language?
We can understand the pulse of the audience. But we need to be very cautious regarding the dubbing quality. We need to make the film in such a way it shouldn’t give a dubbing movie feeling to the audiences. There are hundreds of voices in the original version, and I was tensed about the same when we thought of releasing the film in Telugu.
How do you arrive at a decision on whether to dub or remake films of other languages?
Today most of films are becoming universal. We shouldn’t remake a movie in this day and age. What we need to do is to adapt it and bring localness to it. The nuances in films will decide whether or not we should remake films.
Why did you rope in Rashmi for the Telugu version?
She is sizzling and extremely hot. As a woman, if I am feeling it that way, it must be true. I felt she was the best choice, and having someone like Rashmi would speed up things. We tried to add Telugu flavor to Boys Hostel.
Do you think Annapurna Studios is lagging behind in making trendy films?
I am not going to negate that. When you have something to protect, you tend to be extra careful. When you are in the starting stage, you can experiment. There is no better producer than Nagarjuna Garu, who was way ahead of his time. We have touched on every aspect, but the quantity is low.
There are many actors in the Akkineni family, but there isn’t a single director. Why didn’t you try direction?
I thought of becoming a heroine, and you know what has happened. We were not brought up in the cinema environment in our childhood, and becoming a director is a different thing altogether.
Could you tell us about your upcoming projects?
This interaction is solely aimed at Boys Hostel, and hence I will refrain from talking about other projects. We will announce our upcoming projects at the right time.