'S5' is a horror thriller directed by Bharrath Komalapati. 'No Exit' is its caption. Sai Kumar, Ali, Nandamuri Tarakaratna, Sunil and Prince are playing key roles in the movie. Suresh Varma, Mehaboob, Avanthika, Ruthuja, Raghu, Sanjay, Gabbar Singh Batch, Ramana Reddy and Fish Venkat are part of the cast.
In this interview, director Bharath and producer Goutham Kondepudi talk about the film, its premise, the multi-genre aspects, and more. They add that Mani Sharma's BGM is superb.
My journey has just begun. 'S5' has taught me a lot of experience. There was a time when I wanted to become an actor. I ran away from my home after Intermediate. A movie was launched with me as the hero but it got shelved. I was depressed for some time and was mighty worried about my future. One day, I happened to dance at a Ganesh pandal. Someone said, my dancing was spot-on. I later danced at a New Year bash and they paid me Rs 350. That was in 2004. That's when I started earning money as a dancer. I later got associated with Omkar 'annayya' (for TV stints). Puri Jagannadh sir liked my dance bit and uploaded it on his social media handles. That was after 'Temper'. I then worked on 'Jyothi Lakshmi' as a dance master.
'S5' started in 2019. The film is finally getting released this week. Sai Kumar is playing Chief Minister. He books the bogey for his son's birthday party. 'S5' in the title represents a rail coach. A gang of friends books a train bogey to conduct a bash. They discover that it has got no exit point. The train is going to halt at three railway stations in its run from Hyderabad to Vizag. No character is going to be spared the lurking danger by the end of the journey. The bogey is going to be on fire and kill everyone.
The film combines horror, thrills and fun. The interval point reveals the existence of the ghost. The pre-climax and climax sequences are in the nature of a political drama. The actual plot is fleshed out there. As a debut director, I had to come up with a fresh plot. The lighting pattern is unique. 'Garuda Vega' Anji's cinematography is unique.
The styling of the characters is entirely different. Right from Sai Kumar to Tarak and others, each one of them has got a distinct mannerism. What happens when a fun-loving set of characters faces the ghost is thrilling to watch.
Sai Kumar has a negative role throughout. He doesn't have many dialogues, though.
Tarak is playing Sai Kumar's son Subbu, who is a stubborn, focused political backroom player who wants his father to remain in power no matter what. He is an ultra-loyal son who can do anything for his father. He doesn't want power for himself. This character assumes a new dimension in the pre-climax phase. He is always in a trance and doesn't listen to anybody. His makeover took ten days. He used chemicals for his hair to perfect the look. Due to the excessive use of chemicals, he suffered from the hair fall problem. After the shoot, he tonsured his head.
The train bogey is a set. Three parts of the film take place there. The rest of it takes place in a guest house.
Producer Goutham:
Cinema has always been my passion. I waited for the right subject to turn into a producer. When Bharrath narrated the story, I knew it was the right one. After I greenlit the project, set works were begun. Casting was begun. Tarak was the first one to be approached. Things fell into place one after another at a fast clip.
Since the story is so good, I didn't want to compromise. The scale of the film went up with the entry of actors like Sai Kumar, Sunil and Ali. Every artist came on board only because they liked the script.
Every character in the movie has its name starting with 'S'.
