Gulte News
Ahead of the release of their upcoming buddy comedy film Aay, producer Bunny Vas has been promoting his film personally, sitting in a host of interviews. In an exclusive conversation with Gulte.com, the producer opens up about Aay, Pushpa 2 and more.
Aay is hitting theaters on August 16. However, paid premiere shows will be available from the evening of August 15. Independence Day is quite the packed weekend, with multiple releases, big and small, vying for the patronage of the audience.
When asked about why he did not go for a solo release date for Aay, Bunny Vas says, “People used to head out to watch a movie every weekend before, but that is not the case now. They are only stepping out on festivals and long weekends. No wonder there are so many films releasing in the same festival window. We cannot expect better footfalls if Aay were to release on a normal Friday. Why not make the best use of a festival then?
Aay was shot in real locations in the East Godavari district. Rain is an important component of the film’s visuals and the producers spent a good chunk of the budget towards ensuring artificial sprinklers recreated the rains.
Speaking more about this, Bunny commented, “We wanted the rains to feature so prominently in the film for aesthetic reasons. The audience needs to feel like they have been transported to the Godavari coast. We could not shoot the film during monsoons because the rains wreck the soil. We needed more reliable conditions for the rest of the shoot, hence the artificial sprinklers.”
The film was shot in real locations, at a time when more and more filmmakers are opting to shoot in studios or VR production setups for logistical reasons. When enquired about the challenges involved with shooting in real locations, Bunny says, “We have to always make sure we do not offend the locals at any given time. Our job becomes more difficult if they get offended. And shooting in locations is a costly affair, where we spend 6 lacs a day on an average. One time we were shooting an intense emotional scene at a bridge near Amalapuram. It was a night shoot. We spent around 15 lacs that day. While we were shooting, there was a huge crowd of young men gathered outside. They were making all kinds of comments on the heroine, making her uncomfortable. But we could not do anything except carry on with our shoot. If we asked them to stop, it would have escalated into a conflict that would take two days to settle down. We will lose both time and money in the process. In situations like these, common sense matters more than money.”
August 15 was previously the release date of Pushpa 2. The film’s release has now been pushed to December 6 but many people across industries have set their sights on that date, believing that the film’s makers will postpone the date again.
Bunny Vas put a strong word against these speculations saying, “Everything for Pushpa 2 is on track. Unless there are extraordinary circumstances entirely outside our control, Pushpa 2 is scheduled to hit theatres on December 6. People can say whatever they want to, but this is the truth.”
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