Sriram Raghavan Reveals Midnight Call That Sparked 'Andhadhun' Script

During an exclusive conversation with IANS, Raghavan revealed that he had received a short story from filmmaker Hemand Rao, and he liked it so much that he called him immediately, asking if it could be turned into a feature film.

Soon, the two started contemplating the various scenarios in which the story can be expanded.

Sharing how "Andhadhun" began, Raghavan told IANS, "At around 10.30 at night, I was checking my inbox and Hemant Rao had sent me a short film. I loved it so much I called him immediately. I said, "why don't we adapt this as a feature?"."

He added that the story quickly expanded as they began imagining possibilities. "There was one situation there, and immediately I said, "what if this happens, what if that happens." Three or four what-ifs happened, and then it was pretty smooth sailing till almost the midpoint of the movie."

Raghavan has not just directed the movie but has also co-written the script, along with Hemanth Rao, Pooja Ladha Surti, Arijit Biswas and Yogesh Chandekar.

Featuring Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, and Anil Dhawan as the leads, "Andhadhun" narrates the intriguing tale of a blind piano player who becomes embroiled in the murder of a retired actor.

Backed by Sudhanshu Vats, Ajit Andhare, Gaurav Nanda, Ashok Vasodia, Kewal Garg, and Sanjay Routray, under the banners of Viacom 18 Motion Pictures and, Matchbox Pictures, the camera work for the drama has been performed by K. U. Mohanan, with Pooja Ladha Surti as the head of the editing department.

The project was even later remade in Telugu as "Maestro" (2021), and in Malayalam with the name "Bhramam" (2021). The Tamil version of the drama is called "Andhagan" (2024).

- IANS