Filmmaker SS Rajamouli has been at the centre of attention in Andhra Pradesh, ever since the state's Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu decided to consult the Baahubali director for architectural designs of the buildings proposed to come up in the capital Amaravati.
While some questioned the move, others supported the director, stating that he would add an 'Indian touch' to the designs.
However, there was a lot of confusion surrounding his exact contribution to the designs of various buildings, particularly the Assembly.
A meeting of Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) officials along with Naidu and representatives of architecture firm Foster+Partners was held at the Secretariat on Wednesday to zero down on the designs. Rajamouli was also present.
Speaking to media persons on Wednesday after the meeting, the director has clarified his role, and said that he made only three contributions to the project so far.
“Firstly, I helped in documentation of the design, to reflect the aspirations of the Chief Minister. When I was approached for the first time, I spoke to the CM, and he wanted the building to reflect Indian culture. He said that it should be unique, iconic and reflect the pride of the Telugu people. He gave me a few suggestions like this, which I put down on paper and submitted to the architecture firm," Rajamouli said.
"Secondly, on the request of Norman and Fosters, we had provided some images that represented Indian and Telugu culture for a specific design, but that didn't get picked. However, everyone liked the story and images that we submitted, so maybe that will be used for the Media City or Cultural Center or some other construction of the government," he added.
"Thirdly, in the centre of the building's hall, we had pitched a concept of installing a Telugu Talli (Mother Telugu) statue, in a way that sun rays would fall on it. Even that was unanimously liked by everyone," Rajamouli said.
Elaborating further, he added, "These are my three contributions. Whatever images we provided, it is still in the testing stage only, and not the final product. Otherwise, my contribution is as little as that of the squirrels in the construction of the Rama Sethu.”
Meanwhile, Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) Minister P Narayana, told ABN, "Some fine tuning is needed in both the final designs, but it will soon be decided. The CM said that since it is people's capital, the people's feedback must be taken into account. We will take a final call within the end of this week."
He also said that the Assembly would be ready by March 2019.
While several people present at the meeting voted for their favourite designs on Wednesday, the CRDA said that the final decision will be taken only after feedback from the public.