Fatal Attraction

Kabir Singh director, Sandeep Reddy Vanga, comes clean on allegations of misogyny and more... Devesh Sharma listens in

- Devesh Sharma

Growing up in Warangal, Telangana, Sandeep Reddy Vanga and his brother Pranay Reddy Vanga were complete movie buffs. First-day first-show for a Chiranjeevi movie was the norm. “The fans used to make such a noise that it was hard to hear the dialogue. You just went for the experience,” he recalls. It was during the next few weeks when he had watched the film for perhaps the fifth time, that he understood what the film was about. But he’s clear that understanding the film didn’t matter as it was always about the star. The director says Chiranjeevi had a way of subtly breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to the audience. “He’d be saying his dialogue and then look directly at the camera and say something with his eyes. You felt like he was speaking to you directly. That was the power he had.”

Even after giving hits like Arjun Reddy in Telugu and its remake Kabir Singh in Hindi, Sandeep remains a fanboy, very much in awe with the magic of the movies. He still enjoys watching a film along with other crazy fans in a theatre. “Call me old-school but for me cinema will always remain a mass medium. I see it as a shared experience. Yes, there’s a huge audience now for the OTT platforms. But I want my primary audience to be theatre-goers.” It’s not that he was immune to the magic of other cinemas besides Telugu. Amitabh Bachchan is as big an idol for him. As are Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth.