PremiumYuddhakaanda’s Ajai Rao on why he turned producer: My market value was...
Even though Ajai Rao has hits like Krishnan Love Story, Krishnan Marriage Story, etc., to his credit, he was forced to turn producer because of certain shortcuts that others were resorting to
Krishna Ajai Rao plays a lawyer in his next, Yudhakaanda
Last Updated: 10.52 PM, Mar 28, 2025
Kannada actor Krishna Ajai Rao is preparing for the release of his next, Yuddhakaanda Chapter 2, a courtroom drama about delayed justice, in which he plays a lawyer. Ajai has produced the film directed by Pavan Bhat, which will be in theatres shortly. It is Ajai’s second tryst with production, a decision he’d taken to benefit his career.
When Ajai turned producer for the first time with Krishna Leela , it was because only he and director Shashank really saw the merit in the story and its potential. While Shashank wanted to produce it, given that he was already writer and director, Ajai thought it was best that he take on the responsibility. He knew it would be a decision that he would not regret.
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Years later, he’s in the producer’s chair yet again, which he says is because he had done a deep dive to figure out why his films were not working at the box office. The realization was that film teams that would approach him would have struck a deal with a TV channel for the satellite rights and set out to make a film on that budget, instead of figuring out an amount that the story deserves. As such, for a scene that required a Mercedes, a Maruti 800 would be used instead, he cites as example.
The actor was not in a position to question them, as that would be considered a tantrum, word of which would spread like wildfire. “My issue is that when a film fails, it is the hero who is dubbed a flop actor. When it’s a success, there are multiple stakeholders,” he says, adding, “Doing productions within the market value of an actor is a big issue.” Producers need to first trust the story, the cast and crew. “You can’t only bet on the hero,” says Ajai.