Ravi Babu’s upcoming film Aaviri is reportedly inspired by stories of ex-Warangal Collector Amrapali Kata’s haunted house.
Telangana state cadre IAS officer Amrapali Kata, who has been appointed as deputy secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat at New Delhi, had some interesting stories to share about the 133-year-old Collector’s House in Warangal during her tenure there.
Apart from revealing facts about how and when the house was built, she also mentioned that her predecessors warned her that the house was haunted — which intrigued director Ravi Babu and prompted him to make his upcoming film, Aaviri.
“I don’t want to use her name for my film’s publicity,” declares Ravi Babu, who adds, “But the idea for the film was triggered after I saw her interview about the Collector’s bungalow and how it was haunted.”
Interestingly, the director’s last film Adhugo, which revolved around a piglet, took two years to complete on account of the extensive animation involved. It was while he was looking for a subject for his next film that he came across the interview with Kata, who was then serving as Warangal Collector.
“She admitted that she was too scared to sleep on the second floor of her bungalow as it was rumoured to be haunted, so I took that idea and decided to make a film with it,” says Ravi Babu, who has never met Kata in person.
“I want to invite her to see my film. If she obliges, I will hold a special screening for her. But since she has admitted to being scared of ghosts, I am not sure how she will react to my film, which is a thriller,” says Ravi Babu, who confesses that he did his own research for a few months before shooting for the film.
“I found an old dilapidated house in Banjara Hills which the owners were demolishing, and requested them to give it to me for filming, which they obliged. We worked nearly four months on that building to make it look the way we wanted,” he shares, revealing that Aaviri is also a family drama.
“It shows the day-to-day life of a family, comprising of a father, mother and child. There is also a supernatural element in the film. What happens to the family is told in a thrilling and entertaining way,” says Ravi Babu.
