Vijayapura becomes the backdrop for a comic thriller on demonetization

Director SD Aravinda’s next, after the supernatural thriller Last Bus, is the comic thriller Mataash. The team is just back from North Karnataka, where they shot at Vijayapura for a significant portion of the film. The film, which stars Samarth Narasimharaju, Aishwarya Shindogi and Ravikiran Rajendran, among others, we’re told is a fictional tale based on true incidents.
“Mataash is a comical thriller that is set during the times of demonetization. It is an imaginative story based on true incidents. Vijayapura has a very unique history to it, with the Adil Shah empire that ruled there. The city is home to architectural marvels such as the Gol Gumbaz, Baara Kamaan, Ibrahim Roza and many more. We also wanted to experiment with a different culture and tradition within Karnataka that could add to the overall storyline. The unknown beauty of Vijayapura is exclusively captured in Mataash. We shot amid the Siddeshwara Jaatre, which is celebrating its centenary year. Another connection is that two of the film’s producers, Satish Pathak and Chandrashekar Manur, are from Vijayapura,” says Aravinda.
The filmmaker, who has also composed the music for the film, says, “A folk-based song, Chacchi Rotti Chaulikai... Duddige Sera Badaneekai, was written by Sunil Sudhakar, who is a lecturer at the Akkamahadevi Women’s University, Vijayapura. His team members were part of the song-and-dance sequence that was shot across varied monuments.” Aravinda’s brother and actor, Avinash Narasimharaju, is doing the art and production design for the film.