Sailaja Reddy Alludu director Maruthi on working with Naga Chaitanya: 'He’s a perfect fit for the role'

In the ‘80s and ‘90s, Telugu cinema saw a slew of films, featuring Chiranjeevi, Vanisri, Nagarjuna to name a few, which revolved around an ego clash between the hero and his mother-in-law. And after all these years, going by the promos of Naga Chaitanya, Ramyakrishna, and Anu Emmanuel starrer Sailaja Reddy Alludu, one would be compelled to believe that the film too pays homage to the popular films of the genre from a bygone era. However, the film’s writer and director, Maruthi vehemently denies this comparisons. “It’s nowhere related to the kind of the films we have seen in the ‘90s or ‘80s. It’s not based on an ego clash between the hero and his mother-in-law. In fact, no one challenges anyone in this film, which is a common theme in such films. It’s all about how a well-mannered and soft-spoken guy ends up dealing with three different egoistic characters in his life including his father, lover, and his soon-to-be mother-in-law. He has a conflict with both the daughter and her mother,” Maruthi explains. [caption id=“attachment_5176531” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Sailaja Reddy Alludu director Maruthi (L) with Naga Chaitanya on set. Image via Facebook[/caption] It’s the first time that he has collaborated with Naga Chaitanya and the director says that he was taken aback with how much the latter had evolved as an actor. “Actors do mature a lot with time, but what surprised me the most was how Naga Chaitanya handled the emotional sequences in the film. He reminded me of Nagarjuna on numerous occasions,” the director says, adding, “So far, he has played romantic roles where he behaves and talks in quite a sophisticated manner. In Sailaja Reddy Alludu, we just took it a notch higher in terms of his mannerisms, dialogue delivery, and body language. He’s a perfect fit for the role. Even in real life too, you’ll find him to be quite a positive person and he’s extremely patient. You’ll see Chaitanya as a full-fledged hero in this film.” On a different note, Sailaja Reddy Alludu fulfilled one of Maruthi’s longtime dreams - to work with Ramyakrishna, and he couldn’t be more thrilled about it. “She has always been one of my favourite actors and it’s a dream come true to work with her. Her role is on par with that of Chaitanya’s, and it’ll be a treat to watch Ramyakrishna on screen in this film,” Maruthi adds. In recent past, Maruthi had directed films like Bhale Bhale Magadivoy and Mahanubhavudu, both of which were based on some kind of disorder. However, the director admits that he wanted to enter into a different space with Sailaja Reddy Alludu. “The film doesn’t toy around with any disorders. Ego is a natural human trait and everyone has it. Over the years, I’ve done films in several genres; however, this is the probably the first time where I’ve done a full-fledged family drama. The entire first half of the film focuses on the love story between Chaitanya and Anu Emmanuel, and then, it enters into a more conventional family drama mode in the second half. It was great working with Vennela Kishore and Prudhvi once again. And Anu Emmanuel too has done a good job, and much to my surprise, she told me that she’s kind of like her character in her real life too,” Maruthi reveals. [caption id=“attachment_5176501” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Naga Chaitanya and Anu Emmanuel in a still from Sailaja Reddy Alludu. Image via Twitter[/caption] Not long ago, Maruthi was in talks with Akhil for a film; however, it didn’t materialise. “I had pitched the story of Mahanubhavudu to Akhil; however, he was busy with shooting for Vikram Kumar’s Hello back then. So, we decided to collaborate at a later point of time. At the moment, I have only committed to doing films for various producers, and I don’t know who might star in my next film,” he says. In the past few years, Maruthi has lent his name to several low-budget films, some of which were written by him. He even produced a few under his banner. However, a lot of these films have failed to click with the audience, and the director says that it’s really hard for him to supervise and micro-manage everything amidst his busy schedule. “I’ve decided to take a step back and stop doing such films for the time-being. You just know it when you are heading into a wrong direction,” Maruthi reveals, adding, “I want to keep juggling between genres. We used to make a lot of political dramas and socio-fantasies at one point of time, but we don’t see them as much these days. I would love to make such films soon. And I’m definitely making another film which is based on a medical disorder, in near future.”