Mumbai, Sep 22 (PTI): South Indian actor Nani on Tuesday said the team behind his upcoming film ‘The Paradise’ were prepared for an “A” certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) as the movie features high-intensity action and violence.
Set in the slums of 1980s Secunderabad, the period action drama follows the story of a marginalised tribe, stripped of fundamental rights and faced with social discrimination. A fierce man named, Jadal (Nani), challenges this systemic oppression.
The film received an “A” certificate from the CBFC ahead of its worldwide release on September 24, with Nani saying the makers understand that this could restrict certain sections from watching the film, but added that the story goes beyond its elements of violence.
“I understand where it is coming from; there’s a lot of violence. For example, there are films which are solely focused on violence; like violence for the sake of violence. But ‘The Paradise’ is not like that,” the actor told reporters at a press conference here.
Describing ‘The Paradise’ as a solid drama, packed with emotion, the actor said he is hopeful that those who watch the film will connect with the story.
“Everybody will relate to it whatever the age group, but children can’t (watch it) because there’s violence.
“However, everything that happens in the film, is what we see and relate, there’s drama, emotion, and love, but the violence portion is little higher. So, we were prepared for it (‘A’ certification) while shooting.”
Nani said with ‘The Paradise’, the attempt is to bring back the emotional intensity he has associated with commercial films while growing up.
He cited the example of Shah Rukh Khan-starrer ‘Baazigar’, where he felt emotions were “intense and deep”, and said, “Today, usually in commercial films, emotions and intensity are lacking, because the idea is to include songs and action.”
“But in our childhood, we’ve seen high octane drama in commercial films; that essence is missing in today’s cinema. For instance, when the hero is fighting the villain, we don’t root for him, we don’t feel the anger or depth of it. ‘The Paradise’ brings back that intensity; we want you to feel the raw emotions,” the actor said.
Responding to a query about Bengaluru court granting an interim injunction to the producers of ‘The Paradise’ and restraining circulation of defamatory content on social media, Nani said the move is aimed at AI and bot-generated material and does not target genuine reviews.
The court found the posts went beyond fair criticism and could cause irreparable financial and reputational harm to the makers. Earlier, a similar legal relief was granted to Yash-starrer ‘Toxic’.
Actors Mohan Babu, Kayadu Lohar, Sonali Kulkarni and Raghav Juyal round out the cast of the film, which is slated to arrive in theatres on September 24.
Kulkarni, who plays Nani’s mother Sammakka in the film, said she was initially “amazed” how audiences react when female actors take on mother roles.
“After 26 years, I’m back to playing a mother and this time, I’ve many more scenes with my son (Nani) than I had with Hrithik Roshan in ‘Mission Kashmir’. Then, I had just one scene with Hrithik,” she said, adding that there’s “beauty in growing up”.
“The scenes are written very well and I’ve no complaints. I’ve many scenes with Nani. We enjoyed our takes, they were filed with emotion, it was like a ‘jugal-bandi’,” she said.
Juyal, who plays the antagonist in the film, said after having worked in a South-language film, he was amazed to see how cinema and the contribution of technicians are celebrated.
“I’ve realised one thing; people celebrate and respect cinema over there (in South), they celebrate the work of technicians as well. I want to bring that wave across India,” he said, referring to the Telugu movie star as Nani dada, a universal star.
‘The Paradise’ reunites Nani and director Srikanth Odela after their 2023 hit ‘Dasara’. It is produced by SLV Cinemas. PTI KKP SSG ARB
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