Thread by @rajuvijai

The much-loved #Aithe—a seminal film in the landscape of Telugu cinema— clocks 19 years since release today. A look at its birth, what went behind-the-scenes and the woes the unit had to face in the run up to the release. #19yearsofAithe
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@yeletics @ActorShashank

1)Chandra Sekhar Yeleti wasn’t particular about directing the story of Aithe alone for his debut feature after a successful gig with Amrutham.

He had 2-3 storylines with him but as he was a first-time director, he had to make low-budget movie

2)Aithe was sitting well with the budget, so he decided on it.

Producers Gunnam Gangaraju and Dega Venkat liked the story and overall structure of the screenplay, green-lighting the movie.

3)The US bounty on Osama Bin Laden inspired Yeleti to pen Aithe.

Initially, he conceived ex-military personnel crossing Afghan borders and capturing Osama but as it required a big budget, he dropped the idea, toned it down and localized the plot.

4)He took 4-5 months to develop a full-fledged screenplay.

If it wasn’t for Gangaraju’s constant vigil, Yeleti would’ve taken more time.

He still fondly recalls his producer asking how many more days will he take to pen it.

5)The title Aithe and the caption Anni Cinemalu Okela Vundavu were the ideas of Gangaraju.

Yeleti was okay with the title but was a little skeptical with the caption.

6)Gangaraju by then had a successful stint with FONT greeting Cards, so he cracked the daring caption.

If it was for Yeleti, he wouldn’t have given that caption. But the caption worked like magic.
#19yearsforAithe

7)The budget Yeleti got for the film was 1 crore; he exceeded it by 10 lakhs but was ready with the Telugu and Hindi versions (50 Lakh).

8)The Hindi version got a satellite release 2-3 years after the Telugu version opened.

The guy who purchased it even thought of remaking it with a notable cast from Hindi but his plan fell through.

9)Pavan Malhotra, who cast a spell on the audience with his turn as the most wanted terrorist Irfan Khan, almost didn’t make it to the film to begin with.

When Yeleti and Gangaraju met him for the first time in Mumbai, Yeleti felt he was a little short physically for the role.

10)Gangaraju conveyed the same to Pavan. The actor met Yeleti the next day in shoes with bigger soles and bagged the role.

For a scene post his kidnap, Pavan vomited for real by consuming a large amount of water. Such was his commitment towards Irfan.

11)Except Mohit Chadda, who played Ramu, the casting of other actors was relatively easy for Yeleti.

For Mohit, he had to go to Mumbai after he couldn’t find desired talent in Hyderabad.

Vivek’s role had a comic touch and Gangaraju felt Abhishek won’t fit it.

12)Gangaraju’s greatness was that never pushed Yeleti with his choices.

He left it to the director, who was convinced that Abhishek will pull it off. And boy did he pull it off in some style!

13)Yeleti conducted script reading sessions with his actors before he had the cameras roll.

The unit gelled almost like a family. Gangaraju would offer whatever the team needed.

After pack-up, the unit would break into a game of cricket.

14)It was the best experience Yeleti had shooting a film in his illustrious career so far.

He completed shooting in 60 days, filming it in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Vikarabad forest.

15)Sindhu Tolani’s house portions were shot near BHEL, Hyd, while rest of the scenes involving the friends were shot at Krishnanagar, including the scenes of their hangout spot.

Pavan’s Hyderabad hideout—the house belonged to Gangaraju’s relatives—was filmed at Mehdipatnam.

16)From the idea level to getting the first copy, the whole journey was dream for Yeleti.

The real problem started after the first copy.
#19yearsofAithe

17)Most ppl who watched it at the edit table didn’t like it. A representative for a leading producer too left without speaking a word after watching.

More than the fact that ppl didn’t like it, Yeleti felt that they were slightly unsure about how it will be received.

18)The first positive response came from Ram Gopal Varma, who is good friends with Gangaraju.

It was six months since the unit got the first copy and the first word of appreciation came from Varma.

His praise was a shot in the arm for the whole team.

19)By then, the team including Yeleti felt they made a big mistake with the film.

All around this while, only Gangaraju was 100 % confident about the product he had.

About people who didn’t like it, he would brush it off, saying ‘they didn’t understand it’.

20)In fact, Varma was initially reluctant to see the film, saying that he would say whatever he feels about the film on the face.

21)Turns out, he enjoyed the film; especially the action sequences and he would later have a lengthy conversation with Yeleti.

He even offered a Hindi film for Yeleti.

22)It was time for the release now. Gangaraju decided to give it an own release.

The film opened but the initial footfalls were dull, making the unit a little anxious.

But the silver lining was that whoever watched it had only good things to say.

23)It took a week for it to pick up, after which there was no stopping.

It completed 100 days in five centres. People who didn’t like the film initially too offered a film for Yeleti post release.

24)One of the hilarious episodes of the film comes in the second half when Irfan tries to evade from his confinement in the forest, while the four friends desperately try to catch him.

It was a chase sequence in the middle of the forest.

25)If someone visits a new place, the street dogs of the area would chase him.

But if he stops and confronts them, they start to back off. Yeleti modeled the scene on this concept, delivering a hilarious experience for the viewers.

26)He shot it for 3 days, choreographing it was well. He didn’t expect it to work out the way it did.

Yeleti also choreographed the initial shootout scene at Mumbai airport.

27)Yeleti did some research to understand the lifestyle of underworld dons.

He got in touch with Mahadev, an assistant director back then.

Mahadev had some connections in Mumbai and he helped Yeleti gather some info.

28)Mahadev later went on to associate with K Vijayendra Prasad, even directing 2009 release Mitrudu with Nandamuri Balakrishna.
#19yearsforAithe

29)Yeleti and crew had to encounter a frightening incident on the sets towards the end of the shoot.

In the climax, the car the friends’ gang uses explodes.

30)The guy who supervises the blast miscalculated its effect.

He told the unit it would reach a certain height but the rear part of the car went up in the air amid a swirl of smoke and sat with the electric wires, causing whole Vikarabad to lose electricity.

31)Luckily nothing major transpired.

The unit immediately reached out to cops and electricity department who diffused the situation.

32)Another experience that Yeleti holds dear to his heart was filming the title song.

It was shot at ICRISAT, Patancheru and Narne Estates, Bibinagar over four days.

33)It was not filmed like a regular song as it had a concept.

Nixon choreographed it. It was his first film, so was it for art director Ravinder, cinematographer Senthil and editor Sudhakar.
#19yearsofAithe