Director Samuthirakani is working on Kannada, Telugu and Hindi versions of his Tamil drama Appa, which he has written, directed and produced.
In these films, to be titled as Thande in Kannada, Nana in Telugu and Papa in Hindi, he hopes to feature Shivarajkumar, Venkatesh and Anil Kapoor in the lead.
The director, confirming this, told City Express, "It is a universal subject, and talks about education system and the father-son relationship. It's a story that needs to be told."
His dreams are indeed lofty. "Given an opportunity, I want to do it in 15 languages, but right now, I plan to it take up in three," says the National-award winner.
The official trailer of Appa, released has got more than 3 lakh views. The film is supposed to be a sequel of Saattai.
Samuthirakani says Shivarajkumar was his first choice for the film in Kannada. "I could not think of anyone else. I have already discussed the project with him, and he has also shown interest," he says.
The director plans to show the star Appa in a week or two. "I want his opinion on it. I will then start off with the project in Kannada, as soon as he gives me the dates," he says.
Samuthirakani is eagerly awaiting the opportunity to direct Shivarajkumar. "This is a very good concept. I'm sure, after doing this film, he will called 'Father' by all the children of Karnataka," he says, with confidence.
The music for Appa is composed by Illaiyaraja. The Tamil film is likely to hit screens soon.
If all goes as planned, Thande will be Samuthirakani's second film in Kannada. The director had helmed a film Yaare Kogaadali, starring Puneeth Rajkumar.
In view of the kind of subjects Shivanna has been picking of late, this project is likely to give his career an interesting turn. So the question remains: with his hands full of projects -- Srikantha, Bangaara Son og Bangarada Manushya and Mass Leader -- can he squeeze in dates for Samuthirakani?r.