The villain signals an attack. “Basava,” he commands. A sickle flies through the air as the protagonist kicks up sand and runs to catch it in time. The protagonist then goes on to beat up the villain’s henchmen amid loud background music.
This is a highly-rated action sequence from the Mahesh Babu film Sarileru Neekevvaru and a bunch of youngsters from Nellore in Andhra Pradesh are receiving accolades for replicating the scene, and shooting and editing the footage on their smartphones.
The action sequence performed by the teens has garnered appreciation from many as the videos went viral on social media. Impressed by their work, the film’s director Anil Ravipudi too shared the video on Twitter. He said, “I am truly stunned and pleasantly surprised to see the dedication of these kids...extraordinary. They are not kids but lightning.”
I am truly stunned and pleasently surprised to see the dedication of these kids ... extraordinary.
— Anil Ravipudi (@AnilRavipudi) August 10, 2020
వీళ్ళు పిల్లలు కాదు పిడుగులు
(Note: ఇలాంటివి ఎటువంటి జాగ్రత్త లు లేకుండా చేయడం ప్రమాదం జాగ్రత్త పిల్లలూ )https://t.co/lzTUwfdoiQ#SarileruNeekevvaru
However, he also cautioned the youngsters not to perform such stunts without safety measures.
Seventeen-year-old Kiran, a young film enthusiast from Nellore’s Bhagath Singh Colony, is the director of this fight scene, which included a cast of 14 members, all school-going children who are at home due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Kiran told a media channel that he dropped out of school after Class 9 as he wanted to explore making short films and directing movies with his mobile phone. He said that they decided to honour Mahesh Babu on his birthday with the video.
Speaking to a regional news channel, Kiran said, “I used to watch a lot of movies and short films on YouTube. I asked many to give me chances to act and direct. I thank social media and director Anil sir for appreciating us.”
Kiran lives with his mother and sister while working small jobs to make a livelihood while his crew members study in local schools.
Thirteen-year-old Munna, who played Mahesh Babu’s role in the video, thanked social media users for acknowledging their effort. He said, “Many said I’m too dark to become an actor, but now they’re entertained by my acting. I told them that for acting it doesn’t matter whether I’m dark or light-skinned. Only talent matters.”
Rabbhani, who acted as the villain in the video, said that their director Kiran should be given an opportunity to work as an Assistant Director, given his skill set. Each fight scene is said to have taken 3.5 hours to shoot. Layyeq, the editor, who recently passed his Intermediate (Class 12) exam, edited the video in three hours on his mobile phone, using different applications.
Many social media users and members of the film fraternity have praised the team for their meticulous work, which was done without any expert supervision.