Lost conversations of Freedom Struggle

The Telugu film 'Unheard' selected for Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival

Making a period drama, that too around the Freedom Struggle, is a huge responsibility. There is the responsibility of establishing what’s fact and what’s fiction. “It’s a fine balance. You are going to have an audience that’s completely new to that history and the people of the time,” says Radhika Lavu, whose production house Ellanar Films’s new content piece or film ‘Unheard’ selected for the Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival.

‘Unheard’ is a unique period drama that dives into a clash of ideologies set against the backdrop of the Freedom Movement in Hyderabad and spans between 1900 and 1950. It’s historical fiction,” says Radhika whose previous production, ‘Gods of Dharmapuri’ was a smash hit.

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Starring actors Srinivas Avasarala, Priyadarshi, Ananda Chakrapani, Chandni Chowdhary and Bala Aditya, the film is directed and written by Aditya KV, who drew from his own knowledge of history for the film.

“Unheard explores the power of conversation and different psyches and how they come together in a time where violence and non-violence ideologies sparred with each other. That was really interesting to explore for us,” explains Radhika, founder and MD, Ellanar Films. A lot of their ideas on how the characters should speak, dress, behave and how the sets should look came from old photographs taken by Charles Emmaneul, who was the chief photographer for the Nizam.

The film was shot in October 2020 following all Covid protocols within the city. Fortunately for the film’s crew, no one tested positive for Covid-19 during the production. “We were particular about having only essential personnel on set. All the actors had a lot of Zoom meets where we discussed how to approach scenes, character graphs… The characters also age through the narrative, so we also had to consider the prosthetic work. Everyone was really accommodative and very eager to get into the skin of their respective characters,” says Radhika.

The team was also very conscious of getting their message across without being preachy. “I think the intent has to be honest. The Freedom Struggle incites strong reactions in people, it brought about a revolution in the country’s history. That was one reason why we chose a conversational style, the dialogues were also written in a way that they trigger questions, and push the audience to think and reflect about the people of those times. The film should stir strong emotions in the viewer,” admits Radhika. ‘Unheard’ will be released on August 15 in Telugu first, with plans to make a Hindi remake next year.

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