He loves beautiful women and more than them, he loves trouble.
He eyes on rich producers and more than that, he eyes on different subjects
He likes powerful media and more than that, he likes controversies
To the man who says “Good is boring!!”, there are few other facets which should be understood by aspiring filmmakers.
Needless to say that his name is Ram Gopal Varma aka RGV aka Ramu..!!
With his first movie ‘Shiva’, he became a celebrity across the state. He became a sensation among the youngsters of those days. He made many films and emerged as national level director by stepping into Bollywood. He made his mark with films like Rangeela and the recent Sarkar and Sarkar Raj.
But his graph went down with subsequent flops. There was a vacuum for him. For him nothing seemed interesting there as he came up with the powerful ‘Sarkar’ series and a bashing of the media through ‘Rann’, with Big B and his family members. Things got exhausted. He needs to think out of the box.
What should be done now? – A self analysis and practical approach. So then, he decided to take the second league heroes such as Vivek Oberoi and also wanted to return to Andhra Pradesh and do a Telugu film. What should be the story? Should that be a mere fiction? Or a history based on fiction? He has chosen the latter.
He realized that the Paritala- Suri feud is a powerful concept and has potential not just in Telugu but has a pan Indian appeal as per the subject matter. That gave rise to ‘Rakta Charitra’ and here are few reasons why ‘Rakta Charitra’ stands as Business Case Study in Indian film history.
1st Time In Indian History:
This is perhaps the first time in the history of Indian cinema that a film is being released in 2 parts with an interval of 1 month. It’s a bold step and that happened with unbeatable conviction.
Wonderful Budget Plan:
It is never an easy task to come up with an optimum budget for a film which has two parts and that too a multi-starrer. But sources say that Ramu has managed the entire show within a bracket of Rs 30 crores for both parts with top stars on Indian cinema. He has achieved this by using the Red camera, cutting on budget, and taking exclusive shots wherever necessary. The budget aspect is a strong fundamental for any film maker if they are to come up with success at the box office.
Mind-Game in Casting Plan:
Though the story belongs to the faction land in Andhra Pradesh, Ramu has woven it so well that it is now appealing to the Pan Indian audience. He has propped it perfectly with a versatile and diverse cast. Shatrughan Sinha and Vivek Oberoi for Bollywood, Radhika apte, Rajendra gupta, Ashwini Khalsekar for Mumbaikars, Kota, Subhaleka Sudhakar, Tanikella for Telugus, Suriya, Priyamani for Tamilians, Subrata Dutta for Bengalis, Sudeep for Kannadigas etc. That way, RGV has ensured that almost any part of the audience will connect with the story through their stars.
Radical Publicity Game:
One can cut on cost of production. But none can escape the costs pf publicity. Publicity is the most expensive affair these days with huge number of TV channels, cine magazines etc. How to make it cheaper…rather FREE?? Ramu got a solution. Since the start of ‘Rakta Charitra’, he has believed in publicity through controversy. He took off by visiting Ananthapur and meeting up with the families of Paritala Ravi and Suri himself. Then, he stirred the attention by giving a Mahabharatha quote which is yet to be confirmed. After few days, he casually released a still from the film with a head tonsuring picture and that was enough for various interpretations and gossips.
Then, it turned out to be the Obul Reddy issue which gave enough ammunition to the film. Ramu gave the master stroke by ensuring that neither Paritala nor Suri are shown negative but projecting NTR in a ‘different way’. With this, he garnered free electronic media publicity and that continued to be the post release publicity as well.
Experts say RGV got more than Rs 1 Cr worth media publicity for Free with his mind game.
Magic Spell On Youth:
Youngsters are the main audience those bring grand openings to any film they wish. Youth get attract to the unconventional and rebel of a system. That way, Ramu has captured the hearts of the youngsters with his intellectually arrogant answers and straight forwardness. RGV became an icon for youth. It will be good if they take him in the matters of straight forwardness and boldness in expression….if not in choosing the subjects.
Impact On Society:
Conventionalists call him ‘beast minded’
Rationalists call him ‘practical’
Youngsters call him ‘an icon’
Noticing this popularity and attention of people for RGV, a popular
restaurant is introducing a cocktail on the name of Ram Gopal Varma
(RGV Cocktail…with a blend of Rum-Gyn-Vodka)
Grand Release Plan:
He has organized premieres in Hyderabad and Bangalore with the courtesy of Kalamandir. That’s done on larger scale attracting the attention of media again.
Post Release Publicity:
RGV launched OST (Original Sound Tracks), the back ground scores of ‘Rakta Charitra’ on Madhura Entertainmentt. This is first of its kind in Indian film history again that brought enough publicity.
Self SWOT:
In Tamil, Ramu decided to go in with only one part with Surya in it as he realized that it will flop if shown the regular way, due to casting problem. He did a perfect SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis and decided that the Tamilians will be given a straightforward action treat with top hero Suriya in lead. With a strong casting and a powerful character, Ramu ensured that Suriya got a solid Bollywood launch. That’s another ‘kick’ for Tamilians. He devised a perfect plan and sensationalized the concept. Unlike Shankar who weaves magic through richness and visual appeal, RGV carried the show with controversy and a rather a ‘reality show’ approach towards audience.
Source: www.greatandhra.com
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