Ramesh Aravind will be back as Shivaji Surathkal when sequel goes on floors on November 4

When Ramesh Aravind did the detective thriller Shivaji Surathkal: Ranagiri Rahasya, it was known that the makers would develop it into a franchise. The film’s good showing at the box office, of course, gave them a fillip to get cracking on a sequel soon. Director Akash Srivatsa, in fact, spent considerable time writing the script, while also directing a segment in filmmaker Guru Deshpande’s upcoming anthology Pentagon.

In fact, for Ramesh’s birthday in September this year, the team had even announced the title – Shivaji Surathkal –Mysterious Case of Mayavi, which would be Case No.103 for the detective. Ranagiri Rahasya was Case No.101, incidentally. The team, we hear, is now set to go on floors on November 4, with an extensive schedule in Bengaluru. Ramesh, of course, is excited, as the film brings him in front of the camera after more than two years, a time that was mostly spent in pre-production for the film, which he was actively involved in.. Speaking to us earlier about the film, the actor-filmmaker had said, “This one is, obviously, set after Ranagiri Rahasya, but will have flashbacks to the lead character’s earlier life too. It is interesting to play Shivaji, because he has his own demons. He is on medication and goes crazy if he skips taking it. I had never done a role like that, which was fascinating to me as an actor. The quirks in the character also allow the screenplay a lot of bandwidth. This time, Shivaji is going to be a little more sober; his medications are working. But then things go haywire with his personal problems. So, there will be extremes as far as his characteristics go. The story has a lot of twists and turns; it’s an edge-of-the-seat thriller.”

Produced by Rekha KN and Anup Gowda for Anjanadri Cine Combines, the film will have Radhika Narayan, Raaghu Raamanakoppa, and Vidya Murthy reprising their roles from the original.