Exclusive | Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar on PRK Productions investing in new talent, OTT boom & more

For Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar, the shaping of PRK Productions has been a trial-and-error process. Having begun the journey more than 6 years ago, Ashwini has navigated this learning curve one film at a time, gaining insights from both successes and failures. The objectivity in her about her own films is refreshing and so is the growing sense of clarity about the production house must forge ahead. 

So, it seemed almost timely when OTTplay caught up with Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar ahead of the release of her latest endeavour Aachar & Co. The candid conversation, centred around this new Bengaluru tale that PRK attempts to tell, includes the advent of OTT, making a certain success, spotting talent and a whole lot more. Here are the edited excerpts.

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The term OTT often crops up when one discusses PRK Productions. As many as five of your films - from Law to Man of the Match - released straight on digital platforms. Do you suppose the audience today feels that a PRK film is meant for an OTT viewing?

I don't think so. During the lockdown, I think we found ourselves in the 'right time, right place' kind of situation. OTTs were acquiring content and we had films ready with us so it worked somehow. But if you take Aachar & Co. as an example, it's a simple, sweet film which could be enjoyed with your family in a cinema hall. I don't agree with the idea that since it will be available on some OTT platform sooner or later, it's not necessary to pay a visit to the theatre. As I said, it so happened that we had films ready with us and the OTT platforms were accepting them during the lockdown. None of these were made specifically for OTT.

Speaking of simple films, the market for medium to small-scale cinema is a particularly tough space right now, isn't it?

It is very tough, yes. We, too, are confused about what the audiences want but you have films like Daredevil Musthafa and Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare doing well. Though they aren't big-budget movies, people are still going to the theatres, which gives us hope.

Is there a pattern to this? For the kind of films or stories that the audiences like?

There could be one, yes. It could be about exploring something new with each film. For instance, Aachar & Co. is a family drama that has a lot of nostalgia. Almost like you are watching an old Kannada film and these kinds of stories are bound to feel new for this generation's audience. I feel the kids who have grown up listening to stories from their grandparents about joint families, the drama and all that, will able to experience those times.

But when there isn't clarity about the kind of cinema that would work, how does a film producer navigate this kind of confusion? Something similar is happening in Telugu cinema - where films are divided into either big-ticket or the more quirky, small-town stories - but both kinds have found equal space. How does one strike that balance here, in the Kannada Film Industry?

There is no set formula for success, is there? Everybody wants to try something new to the audience but there is no formula for a hit movie. Personally, a film or a script must be content driven and the way it is presented on the screen is also very important. It could happen that what's on paper is not translated well onto the screen and that's a challenge that I face with newcomers. Not always but I have had a couple of such experiences in the past with our films. But it's always a gamble and you don't know till you are done.

And if a film works - for example Kantara or Daredevil Musthafa example, or even the more recent one, Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare - do you find yourself looking for those kinds of scripts?

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See, Kantara is already made and everybody, at the moment, wants to make another film like that. I don't wish to be part of that space because that film was done so beautifully that whatever you make now, there will only be comparisons. In fact, a filmmaker had approached us for something similar, but I turned it down because of those comparisons. Kantara was a widely accepted film and I loved it - it had everything, from great performances to a great story. 

And about investing in new talent, what is it that you try to spot in a new artist or filmmaker?

Right now it's a 6-minute sample film that we ask for, to see the filmmaker's vision, the quality, etc. But, of course, we have gone wrong even after that, but there are no regrets. In a way, I personally feel that it's always a gamble and as I've said already, there is just no formula to any of this.

What's your creative think-tank like?

I do read all the screenplays myself but I have three noted Kannada filmmakers who guide me throughout. And I cannot name them! (laughs)

Watch Aachar & Co's Sindhu Sreenivasa Murthy in an exclusive conversation with OTTplay: