The ads promoting an e-commerce platform, featuring children talking in adult voices, is what inspired music composer and film director Ravi Basrur to direct his upcoming film, Girmit.
The commercial entertainer, driven by 280 children, will be released in five languages — titled as Pakka Mass in Hindi and Telugu, and Podi Mass in Tamil and Malayalam.
The makers are also planning to release a dubbed version in English as well. “Besides the ad, I was also inspired by the reality show, Drama Juniors, wherein I watched some extraordinary performances from children,” he says.
As suggested by the title, Girmit is a family entertainer, which has elements of love and comedy. This is the fourth film from Ravi Basrur, who started his career as a director with a Tulu film, Gargar Mandala, and followed it with Bilinder. Kataka was his first Kannada film as a director.
The music director, who has composed the background score for 98 films, is known for his work in KGF. Girmit, produced by N S Rajkumar, is being distributed by Karthik Gowda under the banner of KRG Studios, and will be released this week. It has been made under the banners of Omkar Movies and Ravi Basrur Movies.
According to the director, “Cinema is meant to take the entire family to the theatre, including children. So I decided to keep them at the forefront in this subject, which is meant for all age groups.” The director has brought together children aged between 6 and 13 years in the movie.
“Working with these kids gave me a nostalgic feeling, and reminded me of my school days when I participated in stage shows, which has become a rare thing today,” he says, adding that he learnt a lot from the children during the process of making the movie. “The kind of focus I see in these children makes me feel that they are like mini-versions of the present-day stars.”
While children play a vital role in Girmit, the director has picked lead actors to lend their voice. Viewers will be able to hear Yash, Radhika Pandit, Sudha Belawadi, Rangayana Raghu, Achyuth Kumar, Tara, Petrol Prasanna, Sadhu Kokila and others in the film. Power Star Puneeth Rajkumar, who is presenting it, has also sung a song.
Though the entertainer features child artistes like Shlagha Saligrama, Ashlesh Raj, Tanisha Koni, and Aradhya Shetty, the subject explores marital problems.
“The story may sound very heavy, but every scene has been presented with humour,” says Ravi Basrur, refuting the suspicion that such subjects expose youngsters to situations beyond their comprehension.
“Children are asked to learn about history, science, etc. But these are also life lessons. I am happy that I could bring out these children from the clutches of mobile phones and television,” says Ravi Basrur, who has also handled the screenplay, music, and sound design, while camerawork is by Sachin Basrur.