Cinema Bandi: Raj Nidimoru opens up on overwhelming response film received

Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK have often directed and/or produced new-age films and series like, Go Goa Gone, Shor In The City, Stree and The Family Man. The two recently ventured into Telugu cinema with the recently released Cinema Bandi. Raj and DK's experience however, has reportedly turned out to be something they did not expect. 

According to SpotBoyE, during a recent interaction, Raj spoke about Cinema Bandi and said that it was an idea by debutant director Praveen Kandregula and writer Vasanth Maringanti. He explained how the two of them came to Raj & DK with the idea, however, there wasn't a script. The two apparently prepared a "booklet" with their concept, however, they impressed the directing/producing duo anyway.

Cinema Bandi's concept

According to the SpotBoyE report, while speaking about the film, Raj spoke about how when he and DK started out with their film 99, they made a "comicbook" for their producers. This is why the concept booklet that Praveen and Vasanth came to them with for Cinema Bandi, made sense to them. Raj then mentioned how he told the two of them to come up with a script for the film, also asking them to make sure the final product was "raw, real and innocent". 

Raj then spoke about how they took the director and writer duo through "script workshops", made sure their writing was impeccable and then took them to where the film was to be shot. He mentioned how they let them make the film the way they wanted. Raj also spoke about how the villagers from where the film was shot were very cooperative, made the crew feel welcome, and even played roles in the film. 

The audience's response to Cinema Bandi

According to the same report, Raj also spoke about how after the film was submitted to Netflix, they saw the response was bigger and beyond anything they ever expected. He also mentioned how he believed that if the film was released theatrically, it would've been a box office success as Telugu audiences "like seeing an out-of-box films with talented  youngsters at the helm". 

Raj also spoke about how a Telugu project had always been on the bucket list for both Raj and DK. He also mentioned how they are not a film studio and are still directors. He mentioned how the film was an extension of their own work in a way which is why they decided to venture into it. He concluded this by talking about how he is glad that the endeavour worked out so well for them. 

More about Cinema Bandi

Cinema Bandi is a Telugu comedy-drama film written and directed by debutant Praveen Kandregula. It was produced by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, and it features several debutant actors. The film is set in a village near the Andhra-Karnataka border, and revolves around a group of young filmmakers try to make the film through a camera they found. The film premiered on Netflix on May 14, 2021. Take a look at Cinema Bandi's trailer, below. 

Image - Still from Cinema Bandi's trailer