'Ginna' heads to theatres this Friday (October 21) in Telugu, Hindi, and Malayalam. In this interview, Vishnu Manchu talks about the movie's highlights, working with debutant director Eshwar Suryaah, collaborating with star writer Kona Venkat, and sharing screen space with Payal Rajput and Sunny Leone.
He also says that a film with Srinu Vaitla is very much on. He also throws light on producing several remakes in the coming years.
The title 'Ginna' has been derived from my character's name: Gali Nageshwara Rao. He doesn't like people calling him Gali. So he stylizes it and calls himself Ginna.
Coming to the premise, Ginna gets into trouble when the weddings for which he arranges tents are called off repeatedly. People start shooing him away and he becomes indebted as his business fails. Since the story is set in the Chittoor district, I had to speak the local dialect for authenticity. I didn't put in any sort of preparation for the role. My father once told me he didn't put in any homework for 'Peda Rayudu' and 'Rayalaseema Ramanna Chowdhary'.
Our movie has got an amazing interval block that is going to become a highlight. We enjoyed doing 'Ginna' the way we enjoyed 'Dhee', which was also written by Kona Venkat. As for repeating the success of 'Dhee', it's not the point. That film was a trend-setting comedy. 'Ginna' has got all the commercial ingredients going for it. Also, 'Dhee' didn't have an amazing interval block, which 'Ginna' has.
Comedy is a crucial element. Chammak Chandra and Vennala Kishore are going to leave the audience in splits. The second half is totally hilarious.
I have screened 'Ginna' for my family and friends. My mother and my mother-in-law thoroughly enjoyed watching the movie and found it totally hilarious.
It is true that action-comedy is a genre that has worked for me over the years. With 'Ginna', I am trying to rectify some of my missteps in my career. Whether I am going to stick to the genre in the future is something I don't know.
I chose Sunny Leone after being convinced that she is quite popular among the Telugu audience. It was my father's advice, too, that I go ahead casting her. The track between Sunny and Payal Rajput has come out really well. After this movie, Sunny's career as an actor is going to undergo a shift for good.
The contribution made by Kona Venkat garu was an ongoing one throughout the making of the film. His work didn't stop after he wrote the dialogues. He guided us all along.
Upcoming movies as actor, producer:
As for 'D2', I am very much doing it. Srinu Vaitla garu is its director. It will go on the sets in January or February next year. And I have yet another crazy project coming up. I have been holding talks with a director for the last 15 to 18 years. It is also going to be a different genre film.
I have bought remake rights to several movies. They will be produced by me with different heroes. The projects will be made official by the end of next month. The idea behind the remakes is to tell good stories. The remake of the Malayalam movie 'Android Kunjappan' is one of them. My father will be its lead actor.
On MAA:
The members at MAA have been highly supportive. The Executive Committee has been nice to work with. As for a new MAA building, at first, I discussed the issue with Seshagiri Rao and asked him whether I can announce the same. I went along only with his consent. The film industry is like one big family. It would be great if the next President is elected unanimously.
