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Key Points

Director Danish Renzu explains how his film Songs of Paradise was shot entirely on location in Kashmir. He used real silk factories and Amar Singh college to capture authentic period settings. The preserved architecture meant the team needed minimal VFX work. The film stars Saba Azad and Soni Razdan portraying Padma Shri awardee Raj Begum.

Key Points: Director Danish Renzu on Songs of Paradise Real Kashmir Locations

  • Film shot entirely at real Kashmir locations for authentic period feel
  • Features Saba Azad and Soni Razdan portraying Raj Begum
  • Director used preserved architecture to minimize VFX needs
  • Saba Azad worked hard to master Srinagar Kashmiri accent
2 min read

'Songs of Paradise' director says film has been shot at real locations including silk factories and Amar Singh college

Director Danish Renzu reveals how Songs of Paradise was shot entirely at authentic Kashmir locations like silk factories and Amar Singh college for maximum realism.

"The entire film has been shot at real locations, real houses, real old buildings - Danish Renzu"

Mumbai, Aug 31

Director Danish Renzu, who has helmed the recently released streaming movie ‘Song of Paradise’, has spoken up on how the series was mounted.

The film is a period drama, and is inspired by the life of Padma Shri awardee, Raj Begum. The lead character is portrayed by Saba Azad and Soni Razdan across two time periods. The film offers a peek into the life of the Padma Shri awardee.

The director recently spoke with IANS, during the promotional campaign of the film. When he was asked about how he managed to get the production design right on point, he said, “Actually, the entire film has been shot at real locations, real houses, real old buildings including silk factories and Amar Singh college. They still look very old, nothing modern has been done on them”.

The director further mentioned that given the architecture in Kashmir has been preserved well, the team didn’t have to do much as the structures were already there.

He told IANS, “Kashmir already has that vibe, even downtown where we shot, that is also so raw and real, there's not much, no man-made stuff done yet. I made sure we shot in those locations, so it looks as legit and authentic as possible. And the good thing is, we did find those locations and we were well aware of those and we didn't have to do much VFX. We found ready-made locations, which looked exactly how they used to. So, that's the beauty of this”.

Earlier, actress Saba had shared her experience of trying the Kashmiri accent in the film. Saba Azad is also a voice artiste, and was acquainted with the accent from some other part of Kashmir. However, the role demanded the accent from Srinagar. The actress shared that cracking the diction of the character was not exactly a cakewalk for her.

Presented by Excel Entertainment and produced by Apple Tree Pictures Production and Renzu Films Production, ‘Songs of Paradise’ is available to stream on Prime Video.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Great to see filmmakers using real locations instead of sets. Makes the storytelling so much more authentic. Kashmir's beauty deserves to be captured as it is! 🌸
A
Aman W
While I appreciate the authenticity, I hope the production team ensured proper permissions and didn't disrupt the local community during shooting. Sometimes film crews can be quite intrusive.
S
Sarah B
Raj Begum's story deserves to be told! So glad Indian cinema is exploring these incredible real-life personalities. The Kashmiri cultural representation is much needed 👏
V
Vikram M
Amar Singh College is such an iconic location! Studied there for a year during my exchange program. The architecture is indeed breathtaking. Hope the film does justice to these beautiful places.
N
Neha E
Just watched it last night! The locations are stunning and the attention to detail is impressive. Saba Azad's performance is particularly good. Definitely worth your time! 🎬

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