Director
Nag
Ashwin,
who
wowed
critics
and
audiences
alike
with
his
Telugu
directorial
debut
Yevade
Subramanyam,
will
next
helm
a
Telugu-Tamil
bilingual
biopic
on
the
life
of
late
legendary
actress
Savitri.
"The
film
has
been
titled
'Mahanati'
(Telugu),
and
it'll
be
a
magnum
opus
period
film
set
in
the
golden
era.
With
massive
set
pieces,
the
film
will
be
unlike
anything
we've
explored
in
Indian
cinema.
I've
just
finished
the
script
and
should
finalise
the
cast
soon," Ashwin
told
IANS.
When
asked
why
a
biopic
on
Savitri
and
not
on
any
other
popular
actress,
he
said:
"There
have
been
countless
actresses
over
the
last
80
years
in
Telugu
and
Tamil
cinema
but
none
have
earned
the
title
of
Mahanati,
and
even
today
it
has
solely
been
reserved
for
Savitri".
Born
in
January
4,
1936,
Savitri
made
her
acting
debut
in
1950
Telugu-Tamil
drama
Samsaram,
and
went
on
to
star
in
several
classics
such
as
Missamma,
Penin
Perumai,
Pasa
Malar,
Mayabazaar
and
Gundamma
Katha.
Ashwin
feels
it's
time
to
revisit
and
understand
why
Savitri
was
considered
a
legend.
"From
penniless
origin
to
the
first
female
superstar,
her
life
is
quite
a
story.
We
are
in
that
moment
in
time
where
it's
been
long
enough
that
the
legends
have
left
us,
that
we
will
have
to
revisit
them
and
understand
why
they
are
legends," he
said.
"The
story
and
the
character
of
Savitri
is
so
script
like,
it
has
got
it's
emotional
thread
so
strong
that
I'm
very
confident
that
audiences
will
relate
to
it.
I
feel
stories
need
to
have
a
certain
value
to
be
made
into
cinema
and
this
story
has
value
on
so
many
levels
-
historic
and
emotional,"
he
added.
Ashwin
spent
the
last
six
months
in
research
-
reading
articles,
books,
meeting
old
journalists
and
actors.
"There
was
so
much
drama
in
her
life.
She
lived
her
life
fully
and
I
will
be
as
honest
as
possible
in
my
attempt
to
recreate
it,"
he
said.
Though
there
was
tragedy
in
Savitri's
life,
Ashwin
wants
his
story
to
be
a
celebration
of
the
veteran.
"She
was
a
comedian,
prankster
and
the
funniest
person.
I
want
the
story
to
be
a
celebration
but
not
tragic
or
serious.
I
want
to
enjoy
and
celebrate
this
amazing
legend,"
he
added.