I needed an actress who could match up to Puneeth Rajkumar's on-screen presence: Pawan Kumar on Trisha's casting in 'Dvitva'

Filmmaker Pawan Kumar has hit the strides after a small break. With the mighty task of 'Dvitva' beckoning him, Pawan and his team are carrying out the pre-production duties in full swing in Hyderabad to ensure that there are no blips along the way, once the film goes on floors. There is an unusual mix of rigor and calmness in his approach, one that he has employed in the past for his other films too, and despite the expectations that are soaring up outside, the filmmaker in him wants to take this at the same pace and energy that he is now accustomed too.
"Surprisingly, I haven't been pressurized by either the producers or the big stars to mould the film a certain way so that it's more commercially viable.Even the fans on social media have been urging me to make "my kind" of cinema and not treat this as a star vehicle so the pressure's been off right from the beginning. I am going about my work right now in the same way as before and just trying to keep things simple. But mostly the attention's been given to taking care of all the prep work beforehand so that when we start shooting, we are only focusing on execution and nothing else. That's mostly it," shares Pawan Kumar from one of his customary recce trips.
And to make things extra special, the team has roped in Trisha to star opposite Puneeth Rajkumar in the film, making it the duo's second outing after 'Power'. The casting was to always attract attention, considering the project itself, and Pawan too has credible reasons for making the choice. He shares:
"I had been a huge fan of her since the 'Vinnaithandi Varuvaaya' days so it's great that I am finally getting an opportunity to work with her. But beyond that, the team of 'Dvitva' and I had been looking for someone who could match toe-to-toe with Puneeth sir and have the same impact on screen. The story's conceived that way anyway - there is an equal role to play for both the leads and it demanded a bonafide actor and we believed from day one that Trisha is the right fit. Plus, having been an actor and through the grind for so long, Trisha too is in a place where is looking to do only meaningful work and I guess this project struck the right chord with her."
'Dvitva' is expected to go on floors by the end of September and the makers plan on wrapping up the majority of production by the end of the year. Preetha Jayaraman will serve as the film's cinematographer and Ullas Hydur is come on board as the production designer while Pawan Kumar's regular collaborators, Poornachandra Tejaswi (for music) and Suresh Arumugam (editing), feature heading their respective departments.