| Shivam |
|---|
Film poster
|
| Directed by | Srinivasa Raju |
|---|
| Produced by | C. R. Manohar |
|---|
| Written by | Srinivasa Raju |
|---|
| Screenplay by | Srinivasa Raju |
|---|
| Starring | Upendra
Saloni Aswani
Ragini Dwivedi |
|---|
| Music by | Mani Sharma |
|---|
| Cinematography | Venkat Prasad |
|---|
| Edited by | Vinod Manohar |
|---|
Production
company
|
Tanvi Films
|
|---|
| Distributed by | Jayyana Films |
|---|
Release dates
|
- 2 January 2015 (2015-01-02)
|
|---|
Running time
| 149 minutes[1] |
|---|
| Country | India |
|---|
| Language | Kannada |
|---|
| Budget | ₹15 crore (US$2.3 million)[2] |
|---|
Shivam (
Kannada:
ಶಿವಂ) is a 2015 Indian
Kannada action thriller film written and directed by Srinivasa Raju and starring
Upendra,
Saloni Aswani and
Ragini Dwivedi in the lead roles.
[3] The supporting cast features
Makarand Deshpande,
Sharath Lohitashwa,
P. Ravi Shankar,
Srinivasa Murthy. The film opened on the screens on 2 January 2015 to mixed reviews from the critics.
Production[edit]
Casting[edit]
Reports emerged in May 2013 of
Upendra's signing for the film, then titled
Basavanna and that Srinivasa Raju would be directing it. The report said the film however, would not be based on the life of the 12th century A.D. Indian social reformer
Basavanna.
[4] Ragini Dwivedi's casting as the first female lead was confirmed in June 2013, her second opposite Upendra, after
Arakshaka (2012).
[5][6] Saloni Aswani, who was cast opposite Upendra in
Budhivanta (2008) and
Dubai Babu (2009) was signed as the second female lead in July 2013.
[7]
Filming[edit]
The
muhurat shot of the film was taken at the
Bangalore Palace on May 15, 2014.
[4] Filming began in June 2013, at the
Dodda Ganeshana Gudi, a temple in the
Basavanagudi locality of
Bangalore.
[8] It required that Upendra sport a bald head in the film, and instead of the head being shaved, prosthetics were used, considering that he was simultaneously filming with another film that did not require the look. The 3-D effects used in making it was the first for an Indian film and costed around
₹90 lakh (US$140,000).
[2] Parts of the shooting were completed in India,
Sweden,
Thailand and
Turkey. The shooting schedule in India was however delayed by over a month, owing to delay in getting official permission for filming at the temple site in
Thanjavur.
[9] The Indian schedule also included filming in
Chennai,
Mysore,
Melukote and Bangalore.
[10] The song sequences were then filmed in places like
Istanbul and
Antalya in Turkey, and
Cyprus.
[11][12] Speaking of Upendra's dialogues and screen time in the film, Raju said, "Upendra has very less dialogues in this film, that's quite a change from what people have seen of him on screen so far." and said that he would feature in the bald look for 40 minutes in the film.
[9] Filming completed in May 2014, and the film producer was said to have contemplated its release on September 18, 2014, on the occasion of Upendra's birthday, which however did not materialise.
[11] The work on
dubbing was complete at the Balaji Digital Studio in Bangalore in late October 2014.
[10]
Title controversy[edit]
The controversial first look poster of
Shivam (then titled
Basavanna)
Following the announcement of the film and during the pre-production stages, the film titled
Hara Hara Mahadev. Following a discussion by the makers, it was titled
Basavanna.
[4] This proved controversial causing an uproar in the
Lingayat community in
Karnataka, as the name suggested a reference to the Lingayatism pioneer and social reformer
Basava, referred to commonly as Basavanna. The issue was raised at the
Karnataka Legislative Assembly by former Chief Minister of Karnataka,
B. S. Yeddyurappa, who urged that the title be changed.
[13] Following this, the director on deciding to title the film
Brahmana was refused permission by the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) and was immediately withdrawn.
[14] The producers then decided the release the film theatrically without a title. The film posters then emerged with a symbol of
Nandi, a bull, believed to be the vehicle of the mythological Indian
Hindu deity Shiva, and Upendra sitting in
dhyana mudra, the spiritual gesture of meditation, like an ascetic.
[9] Having been rejected by the KFCC again, sections of the Kannada film industry began calling it
Naama and
Trinetra, before the film was titled
Shivam, which the Regional Board of Film Certification accepted in mid-November 2014.
[15]
Marketing[edit]
The first look poster was launched on May 13, 2014, two days prior to the muhurat shot. It featured a person seated in
Chin Mudrā posture with a
pistol by his side. The poster became controversial and immediately drew the attention of the media, following which the Manohar promised that the forthcoming posters would not feature the pistol.
[14] The motion poster of it was released on
YouTube. Following this, posters were released featuring Upendra with a bald head brandishing a sword.
[16] They were followed by title-less posters featuring Upendra in dhyana mudra with a symbol of Nandi by his side and another featuring three horizontal lines of
Vibhuti with deity Shiva's third eye vertically across them.
[9] The film trailer was released on November 30, 2014, on the occasion of the film's audio release in Bangalore.
[17]
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