On Monday, veteran costume designer Neeraja Kona announced her maiden directorial Telusu Kada. Outside of costume design, she has worked as a lyricist in a handful of films, in addition to publishing her poetry in a book titled Waves, Sand, and Magic.
Telusu Kada stars Siddu Jonnalagadda, Raashi Khanna and KGF-fame actor Srinidhi Shetty (in her Telugu debut). Telusu Kada was announced with a video that features the names of the film’s key collaborators superimposed over shots of a banquet being set.
When asked about the decision to announce the film’s cast and crew in the particular way they did, Neeraja says, “Siddu plays the role of a restauranteur in the film. He runs a fine-dining restaurant. Hence, its incorporation in the said video. There are some more details as well, which I am sure will make sense as and when more promotional materials of the film are out.”
Telusu Kada is scheduled to go on floors by the end of November. The actor trio in the film is yet another interesting element, one very crucial to anchor the film’s soulful yet dramatic themes, Neeraja admits. Speaking about her actors, she continues, “Siddu, Srinidhi, and Raashi, they all bring something unique to the table. It is not about how long they are going to be on the screen. They are the three pillars of this story. The film relies on them as much as they rely on each other. You will see these actors in different timelines as well as the same one, where their individual arcs converge.”
Neeraja reveals that her directorial dreams have been five years in the making, during which she has been developing her own repository of stories to pitch along the way. Considering the fact that Siddu is a writer himself, did he give any inputs? Neeraja replies, “Siddu decided to join the project on the very day I pitched it to him. To have that kind of confidence come from a screenwriter was very validating. It is great to have him on board, the discussions we have had over the last couple of months have all moved the script towards a more positive direction.”
Contrary to the popular perception of how female filmmakers usually gravitate towards arthouse, parallel cinema, she emphatically states that her sensibilities have been shaped by commercial films buoyed by strong emotions. “I am inspired by Zoya Akhtar’s films. Her films are a classic example of how to combine the best of commercial cinema with emotionally resonant narratives. Closer home, the work done by my friends (actors) Nani and Nithiin has been equally helpful in understanding my voice as a filmmaker. In a way, they have been my film school”, says Neeraja.
Neeraja has worked on a little more than 88 films as a costume designer to date. Her recent and upcoming projects include Kumari Srimathi, Extra, Saindhav, Vijay Devarakonda’s next with Gowtam Tinnanuri, and a Nazriya starrer titled Madras Murders. “In my first year as a costume designer, I worked in as many as 13 films. I am used to working in multiple projects and have no intention of putting them on hold as I go ahead to make a film.”
Funnily enough, Neeraja will not be designing costumes for Telusu Kada, choosing instead to hand over the mantle to her contemporary Archana Rao. Commenting on the same, Neeraja replies, laughing. “Multitasking is not new to me, but this is a whole other ballgame, not to mention the fact that it is also the first time I am working as a director. So I was not gonna handle costumes, it only made sense that I hand the reins over to someone I consider as one of the best and Archana is really good.”