Uppi'ng his reel life!

The multi-talented filmmaker Real Star Upendra learnt his skills from his mentor Kashinath, who has groomed many talents in the past. Following the footsteps of his guru, Upendra too provided opportunities to many aspiring filmmakers. One among them is Sandeep Janardhan, who has been his associate director in films such as Super, Uppi2, Godfather and Topiwala. Janardhan now turns independent director for a romantic thriller Face 2 Face, which he says is a screenplay based on the realities of normal day lives of an ordinary person. Produced by his mother, Sandeep shares his directorial journey and more about his debut venture.

“Since school, I was interested in acting. I would always take part in dramas but eventually my focus shifted elsewhere, and I lost interest in acting. I studied costume designing but when I could not find a suitable job, I started looking out for opportunities in films. When I was about to take up a few projects in the Telugu industry, a friend of mine introduced me to Uppi Sir. Hearing that I was headed to another industry, he offered me some work with him. Thereafter, I have been assisting him in almost all his movies,” says Sandeep Janardhan.

This led to his future hero for his debut venture Face 2 Face. “I along with Rohit Bhanu Prakash were working along with Uppi Sir, and would discuss about making a romantic thriller. Rohit is the grandson of senior actor Shivaram Sir, and is a very talented actor. He was last seen in Drishya which featured Ravichandran Sir in the lead. When I finalised Face 2 Face, I could think of no one else but Rohit for the role,” Sandeep says.

Insofar as taking care of producing and directing a debut venture goes, Sandeep shares, “We started it as a low budget project but it ended with double the expenditure. We did not want to compromise on quality. I would start shooting at 5 am before packing up by 6 pm. Then, I would sit and take care of production which would run till midnight. It was quite an experience for me.”

The debut venture is close to real life and inspired by experiences which a person encounters in his daily life. “Right from traffic situations on busy roads, love, possessiveness, jealousy and suspicious human nature dominates Face 2 Face. More than the story, the screenplay plays a vital role. The three characters in the movie played by Divya Uruduga, Poorvi Joshi along with Rohit are intertwined in a complex relationship,” he adds.

Sandeep feels that Uppi Sir himself gave him the thumbs up for the venture after hearing about the subject. He has released a teaser of his movie. “I did not want to disturb his busy schedule, as he is presently on a political campaign with his Prajajeeya Party. I cannot wait to show him my work after the release.”