HYDERABAD: Tillu Square, which releases on March 29, is an official sequel to the 2022 sleeper hit DJ Tillu. While Siddhu reprises the titular role, the rest of the team went through a major overhaul. Naruda Donaruda (2016) and Adbhutham (2021)-fame filmmaker Mallik Ram took the director’s mantle, replacing Vimal Krishna, who helmed the original.
Contrary to expectations, Ram sounds rather self-assured in his contribution to the film, Siddhu Jonnalagadda’s enduring contributions notwithstanding. He states, “We have seen each other struggle and grow in the industry for the past 12 years. So if Siddhu gets all the credit for the success, it only makes me happy to see that. In fact, it’s a very good feeling that we are finally doing a film together after all these years.”
Ram adds that Siddhu and him always wanted to do a project together, and were even working on a separate concept earlier. Post DJ Tillu’s release, it was producer Naga Vamsi who brought up the prospect of him directing Tillu Square, Ram recalls. Further talking about his relationship with Siddhu, Ram recalls how he spent the better part of the last two years with the actor. The director says, “Out of the 700 days we worked on the film, almost 600 of them were spent with him. I think I spent more time with him than with my own family.”
Mallik Ram, who also directed the popular web series Pelli Gola, states that he has always been a collaborative filmmaker. He explains, “Even for Adbhutham, I bought the script from Prasanth Varma, who developed it at his company, Scriptville. All of them are getting their due credit now, and it’s only a happy feeling.” Mallik also recalls calling MAD director and fellow Sithara Entertainments alum Kalyan Shankar for a shoot schedule in Kakinada. He adds, “He was actively involved, and the suggestions he brought in during the shoot were equally a part of the collaborative process.”
The success of DJ Tillu took everyone by surprise. However, it also means that Tillu Square now carries a lot of expectations with it. Ram clarifies that the team was conscious of making the successor a bigger film in every sense. He elaborates, “We thought, ‘let’s make it big; let’s create bigger songs.’ We also incorporated many guest appearances from DJ Tillu. Overall, Tillu Square is a very well-packaged film, I must say.” At the same time, Mallik also admits that DJ Tillu was in a league of its own. He adds, “It was a cult hit. There were not many films like it earlier, and these cult films can’t be recreated. We cannot make another DJ Tillu.”
While Tillu Square is a continuation of the protagonist’s life journey, Ram reinstates that this film is very different both in terms of storyline and genre. He explains, “Part one was a black drama comedy; this is not. There are no dead bodies or such in the sequel. Tillu Square is simple, commercial and universal.”
The teaser of Tillu Square caught a lot of attention for its ‘boldness’ which, according to many, is much higher than the original. Addressing the subject, Ram replies, “This was not a conscious effort to commercialise the film; the ‘boldness’ is a part of its nature. If you have noticed, even the conversations between the film’s leads have an edgy quality.”
When enquired about the graphic scenes between Siddhu and the film’s female lead Anupama Parameswaran, and whether Anupama was merely cast as eye candy and little else, Mallik Ram quietly registers his protest, stating, “Anupama is a brilliant actress. This was an extremely challenging role to play, and we tested many new girls along with some established names. Anupama came in and gave a few readings; she was very quick to understand the character and the emotion.”
Ram also informs how Anupama almost did not get cast for the film because of scheduling conflicts. He recalls, “Anupama was always our first choice, but she was also a very busy actress and didn’t have enough dates back then. Our film eventually got delayed, and Anupama luckily had the dates available by then.”
The cast and crew changes were not the only challenges for Tillu Square team, though. Ram recalls deciding to make significant changes in the film’s second half after watching the rushes. The director explains his dilemma, which he notes is rooted in the traditions of Indian cinema. He says, “Our cinema has a small, unique problem: we need to stop and restart our stories at intervals. We had first written a track for that post-intermission segment and shot it for 15 days. However, we didn’t like what we saw at the edit table. So we decided to write a new track and shoot again.” It was this reshoot that eventually led to a delay in film’s release, from February 9 to March 29.
However, despite the reshoots and the rewrites, Ram gratefully acknowledges the freedom given to him by his producers at Sithara Entertainments. The director says, “Frankly, there was never any discussion about budget controls. Their only focus was on quality and creativity. Sithara Entertainments is a great banner to make big films, small films, or any kind of film.”