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Producer M. G. Ramamurthy is a different man. He believes in working in his own way. He is the producer who gave actor Darshan the much needed break with "Majestic". Unlike the other producers in Gandhinagar, he believes in newcomers. He has encouraged a lot of them and given them an opportunity to work in his films. His latest film "Dharma" released last week all across the state. He is jubilant seeing the response of the film. It has opened to full houses across the state.

I met Ramamurthy at his production office in Rajajinagar for an exclusive interview for OKC.

OKC: Congratulations. Dharma is doing well at the box office.
Ramamurthy: Thank You. The audience response has been amazing. I have just got reports from Mandya, Mysore and Hubli. Everywhere theatres are displaying house full boards, especially in Mysore the Darshan territory, where he has a huge fan following. I am very happy that the hard work of all the cast and the crew have paid off.

Kannada Movie: Dharma

OKC: You made Dharma after a long gap of two years. Tell how did it happen?
Ramamurthy: After the huge success of Majestic, I was looking for a very good story. I wanted to deliver another good film, which will provide wholesome entertainment for the Kannada people. When i was in Chennai to meet Ilayaraja, he told me about Chandranath who had finished a film course diploma. I met Chandranath and was really impressed with the story he told me. That's how Dharma happened. I asked him to go ahead with the script. Even Darshan had dates at that time. He told me "Lets do Dharma. It is the most challenging film for me". After the muhurtham we never looked back. We completed the film on time.

OKC: You have also introduced a new Choreographer and an Action Director through Dharma. Tell us about them.
Ramamurthy: I always believe that newcomers must be encouraged. When i see talent and potential in them, i give them a chance in my films. I had seen the work of Rajesh the choreographer before. He was innovative in his approach. So i thought he deserved to be the choreographer of my film. Even Ravi Varma my action director is a hardworking and sincere professional. He has done some extraordinary stunts in Dharma. People are appreciating the film for its action sequences. I must also add that Hamsalekha's music and lyrics have added a new flavour to the film. Sunderanath Suvarna's camera work is also terrific.

OKC: You also managed to cast Dattanna in your film. How was the experience of working with such a good actor?
Ramamurthy: It was indeed a privilege to work with Dattanna. He is one of the best actors we have today. Jaijagdish, Doddanna, Rangayana Raghu, Ramesh Pandit, Sindhu Menon and all other actors have done a terrific job. Above all everyone has been very cooperative during the shoot. This makes a producer's job very easy. We all worked like family members during the shooting of the film. I did not face a single problem during the making of the film.

OKC: The toughest part of a producer's job is the distribution of the film. Was it easy for you to find a distributor?
Ramamurthy: I was always confident of my films when i showed it to the distributors. During Majestic, even though we had a new hero Darshan we could easily sell our film to the distributors, as the quality of the film was good. Even for Dharma we expected a good price and we got it. If you have made a good film then selling a film in Gandhinagar is not that difficult.

OKC: You were a civil contractor who executed city corporation works. How did you end up being a producer?
Ramamurthy: I had a lot of friends from the film industry. I used to visit the film sets regularly. The word film making also fascinated me. Cameraman Anaji Nagaraj told me about Darshan who was a new comer then. P. N. Sathya had come up with the story of the underworld. I was impressed with the story. I decided to make the film. That's how Majestic happened. After Majestic, Darshan has never turned back. He is big star now.

Kannada Movie: Dharma

OKC: You also have the rights to do a film on the story of Encounter Specialist of Mumbai crime branch Daya Nayak.
Ramamurthy: Yes that's true. The scripting of the film Daya Nayak is on. Mysore Harish is writing the script. We have not yet decided who will act in the film. We will finalise everything very soon. I met Daya Nayak personally and spoke to him. His tryst with the underworld and gang wars is truly unnerving. Making a film on his life will be a dream come true for me.

OKC: Elections are coming up. Like many film industry people are you entering politics?
Ramamurthy: No not again. I made this mistake in the last elections. I campaigned and worked for Janata Dal. But this time like every citizen of India i will just cast my vote. No more politics for me.

OKC: Do you intend to direct a film in the future?
Ramamurthy: No i don't think i can do the job of direction. I am still learning the process of film production. To be a perfectionist in my job, I have to go a long way. So right now I cannot think about anything else except production.

OKC: You are also a producer who gives his director total freedom to do whatever he wants to do. Don't you think that's how films go over budget?
Ramamurthy: Yes that is a way a producer should be. He should never interfere with a director. If you don't have the confidence and trust in him he won't be able to deliver the goods. So when my action director wanted to use multiple cameras to shoot the climax scenes I told him to go ahead. I believe in giving my technicians the best equipment. I don't mind if I have to shell out a few lakhs more. See the climax of Dharma you will agree with me.

OKC: Kannada films are not released in the overseas markets like Hindi and Tamil films. Don't you think time has come for us to release our films in the USA and UK simultaneously?
Ramamurthy: It's really sad that we have no access to the distributors overseas. If all the NRI Kannadigas encourage us and help us to release Kannada films in America, we can see a lot of films releasing there simultaneously. We need someone from America to coordinate with us. We will definitely release our films there.

OKC: Thank you very much for speaking to OKC.
Ramamurthy: Thank You.

- Harish Mattur, Bangalore

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