Producer Dheeraj Mogilineni Interview
Producer and distributor Dheeraj Mogilineni has earned a reputation for bringing content-driven films to audiences and delivering successful ventures. Under his banner, Dheeraj Mogilineni Entertainments, he is now producing a children’s film titled “Summer Holidays”. Directed by Srikar, the film promises to take audiences on a nostalgic journey through a beautiful story that brings back memories of childhood. Master Rohan, Master Arun and Baby Khushi play pivotal roles. Summer Holidays is set for a grand theatrical release on November 6.
In a recent interview, producer Dheeraj Mogilineni shared several interesting insights about the film and its highlights.
- When I first heard this story, it deeply touched my heart and reminded me of my real-life experiences and childhood memories. The dialogues delivered by Jayasudha garu, who plays the grandmother, reminded me of the way my own grandmother used to speak. Similarly, the words spoken by Vasuki garu felt exactly like the way my mother used to talk to me. I believed audiences would experience the same emotional connection. We could have changed the children's characters into teenagers and added a love story to make the film more commercial. But that would have taken away the innocence of childhood. The sensitivity and innocence of these characters are the soul of this story.
- We often see films that break existing trends and create new ones. After films like Pelli Choopulu, people felt that the trend of romantic comedies had faded. Later, Premalu arrived as a dubbed Telugu film and received a wonderful response, followed by Little Hearts. Similarly, we believe Summer Holidays can inspire filmmakers to explore children's stories once again. We hope that after watching our film, more filmmakers will come forward to make such movies. Jayasudha garu, who plays the grandmother, was supposed to attend our recent trailer launch. She will be joining us at our next event.
- I am making every effort to take the story I believe in strongly to audiences. We initially wanted to release the film during the summer season, but that did not work out. Now that the release has been finalised, we felt the Diwali festive season would be an appropriate time. We were initially concerned that films scheduled for October 30 might get postponed to November 6, but fortunately, that has not happened. We can say that our film has almost secured a solo release. I also feel the government should consider offering certain incentives to films that make special attempts, small films made by new producers and locally produced content. Theatre revenues have declined, and OTT platforms are largely acquiring big films. In such circumstances, government support would be very helpful for small films.
- We are getting good theatres for our November 6 release, and the number of screens could increase further once the film receives positive word of mouth. Our film does not carry a specific message; instead, it is driven by beautiful emotions. It captures the emotional experiences of children who spend two months of their summer vacation at their grandmother's home before returning to their routines. The bond they share with their grandmother and village friends, the friendship between Arun and Rohan's characters, and the emotional scenes between a father and son are some of the heartwarming elements. As a producer, I am not looking for awards. I simply want audiences to come to theatres and make our film a success.
- I strongly believe that if Summer Holidays works well, it will encourage the industry to produce more films of this kind. When I produced The Girlfriend, I knew it was not a film meant for every section of the audience, but I was confident that a particular segment would connect with it. There is always an audience for different kinds of cinema. Someone has to take the first step to inspire others. Even when I make bigger films in the future, I will remember that I produced a special film like Summer Holidays a decade earlier. That is how special this project is to me. I found the same innocence and honesty in our director that are reflected in Rohan and Arun's characters. Nothing in the story feels artificially introduced. The performances, movements and visuals have all been handled with great naturalness.
- During the first six months of this year, not many films arrived in theatres. Now, films are releasing one after another like a flood. There are continuous teaser launches, trailer releases and song launches, leaving very little breathing space for audiences to register each film. If producers had planned their releases well in advance, we could have avoided such a crowded second half of the year.
- Currently, we are producing a film titled “Antha Ramuloru Chooskuntaru” starring Sangeeth Shobhan and Anaswara. Nearly 80 percent of the shoot has been completed. We initially planned a December release, but considering the current release scenario, we have shifted it to February. After that, we are planning to collaborate with Nanda Kishore, director of 35, for another film, followed by a project with Kaushik, director of Kishkindhapuri. Both projects are expected to go on floors after Sankranthi.
