Mythological characters a hit with audiences: Telugu director

Telugu director Venkat Pampana, who has included a mythological character in his upcoming socio-fantasy "Nenu Chala Worst", says such characters are always loved by the audiences - provided they are presented in an interesting way.

"Mythological characters have been used in cinema since its inception. In fact, there was an era where most films were made after some of these characters. Audiences still love mythological characters, but they expect innovation," Venkat told IANS.

"There have been so many films on Yamraj and Ganesha, but how many do we remember off the bat? Only if we do something exciting with these characters, will audiences enjoy and remember them for a long time," he added.

However, Venkat believes extra care needs to be taken while handling such characters.

"We need to be very careful while dealing with mythological characters. Most of these characters are worshipped as gods in households and, therefore, it's important to not alter their identity for a film or do something that may likely stir controversy," he said.

How do you know what is acceptable?

"Nobody knows what is acceptable, but it's better to not to change too much. We can't change something that's been around for years and expect audiences to embrace it," he added.

In "Nenu Chala Worst", Nandamuri Taraka Ratna will be seen as Yamraj.

"We haven't changed much about the character Yamraj, but we have changed the environment around him with computer graphics. There are about 25 minutes of graphics used in the film and we have also filmed a song on the character," said Venkat.

Nandan, Neeraj, Krishna and Swapna play key parts in the movie, jointly produced by P.S.S Goud and T. Naresh Goud.

The film is slated to release in June.