With an initial poster tease on Sunday, director Suri has officially confirmed that his much-talked-about project, Kaage Bangara, is on the floors. The makers are gearing up to unveil the first-look reveal on October 11. Speaking exclusively to CE, the filmmaker opened up about moving past recent project delays, returning to the gritty universe connecting Kendasampige and Popcorn Monkey Tiger, and coming with multiple projects. "What kept me going through every hurdle was our stories, concepts, and ideas," Suri shares, crediting his trusted writing collaborators, Surendranath and Amri. He then adds, “Of course, I had Ashwin, an ardent fan and well-wisher,” who came forward to support him through the crisis. "Narration today often feels like it is expected to mimic stand-up comedy, but cinema is a craft where the written page must convert organically onto the screen. The inherent value of the script is what brought our production partners together," says Suri. Backed by Surya Prakhyath’s GP Features and Harshit Gowda’s HRG Productions, Kaage Bangara will have Surya Prakhyath and Rithanya in the lead roles of Jagga and Anjali. Also part of the ensemble is filmmaker-actor Natesh Hegde, who is known for helming Pedro and the upcoming Kurka. He will be playing Ruby, the main antagonist in the film.
Kaage Bangara also features familiar faces carrying forward threads from Kendasampige, including Prashanth Siddhi and key narrative links tracing back to the iconic gate sequence. On the technical front, Suri reunites with his frequent collaborators: Charan Raj is composing the music and background score, Shekar S DFD handles the cinematography, and Deepu S Kumar serves as the editor.
For Suri, having Golden Star Ganesh do the launch honours was a personal highlight. "I always wanted Ganesh to launch the film, and it finally happened," says the director, who also had Imran Sardhariya to roll the camera. The team has already wrapped a crucial schedule of night shoots and plans to complete the film's shoot in the coming months. Describing the project as a blend of romance, raw humour, and a thriller narrative, Suri reveals that this marks the start of a relentless creative stretch: "I will be continuously busy for the next three years with multiple projects already planned. We won’t be stopping now," he signs off.