Panjaa is not part of number game: Neelima

Hyderabad: 'We don't want to be part of the number game in the industry and we are releasing the film with required number of prints,' says Neelima Tirumalasetti, one of the producers of Pawan kalyan's upcoming movie 'Panjaa'

Neelima Tirumalasetti is a diehard movie buff. The Software professional, who worked for Microsoft in the US, packed her bags to return to India three years ago.

A native of Chirala in Prakasam district, the mother of two children, took the first leap of faith when she plunged into politics to join Megastar Chiranjeevi's Praja Rajyam Party where she met his brother and actor Pawan Kalyan.

Unlike most producers who make movies for money, Neelima says she did simply for the sake of her beloved hero Pawan Kalyan.

Clad in simple black and blue salwar kameez, the down-to-earth shares her production experience with media people.

What brought you into movies?

I joined 'Praja Rajyam Party' in 2009 and played a vital role in 'Yuva Rajyam' under the leadership of Pawan Kalyan. I was closely associated with Pawan since then and have always admired his vision. When Pawan spoke about Panjaa, I was keen on producing it.

Pawan roped in Tamil director Vishnu Vardhan on his friend and director S J Surya's suggestion. I only knew the storyline of Panjaa when accepted it.

Talking about the title of the movie, we heard lot of titles like Shadow, Khali and Tilak before the declaration of Panjaa. What effort went in bringing this Title?

Earlier Vishnu was impressed with the title 'Shadow' but later he dropped it for 'Panjaa' is not just a claw of ferocious lion. It also illustrates Pawan Kalyan's bold attitude both on-screen and off-screen.

What is the movie about?

Pawan (Jayadev) is portrayed as a criminal syndicate in the film. It is simply a love story mixed with entertainment on the backdrop of mafia. It was Pawan's dream to portray himself as mafia personnel. The whole crew was handpicked by the director.

Jackie Shroff plays the antagonist in the film. Action scenes came out really well and will be the highlight of the film. Shyam Kaushal of '3 Idiots', 'Krrish' and 'Don' fame is the action choreographer.

Cinematographer P S Vinod and Editor Sri K Prasad have done an outstanding job with regards to the output of the film. Brahmanandam is playing a cop and will be fun to watch out for.

Pawan's look in the movie has been the talk of the film industry and fans. Whose idea was it and will it be seen throughout the movie?

It is Vishnu who came up with the look for Kalyan. The actor will appear throughout the film with that look. It's not my cup of tea to get involved when it comes to filming. We just provided what was asked for the film.

Where was the movie shot?

Around 55 days of shoot happened in Kolkata apart from other parts such as Pollachi (Tamil Nadu) and Film City in Hyderabad. The entire shooting was wrapped up in just 110 days.

What are your most memorable moments while shooting?

Filming of 'Paparayudu '' song was most memorable. It was fun to watch Pawan Kalyan and Brahmanandam sharing screen space and giving their best to the song.

The way they both handled themselves before and off the camera was great to watch and I loved the way they went about their work, thorough professionals. Pawan was ill during the filming of last song but he still came on board with fever and completed his work.

With how many numbers of prints Panjaa is going to release on December 9?

We don't want to be part of the number game in the industry and we are releasing the film with required number of prints. I'm sure that the movie will stand along with the number of prints that we are releasing with. Interestingly, we've been constantly approached for overseas rights from various parts of the world.

What are the precautions you are taking to avert Piracy?

We have tied up with three private companies to avert piracy and still it is a big challenge to face the evil. We are quite sure about preventing the online piracy but it is tough to avoid piracy CD's.

Pawan Kalyan often stated that it depends on individual ethics. We're also trying our best to curb it to the maximum level. We need media's support to face this evil.