Aranya Tougher To Work Than Baahubali: Rana

Rana is sincerely and vigorously promoting Aranya as he feels it is the story to be told for the next generations. Moreover, he developed fondness for forests and animals, after he started working for the film. It’s not a regular process of going directly to sets and shooting for his part. He recalls the toil went behind the film. He shares that the film is entirely shot in a dense forest area amidst real elephants. The Baahubali actor admits that working for Aranya was tougher than the magnum opus. “Baahubali was shot for 5 years. But used to have all facilities during shoot and was comfortable on sets. Aranya was very difficult to shoot as it is shot in thick forests where we need to survive with minimal facilities,” says Rana. As the film is all set for release on 26th of this month, Rana opens up for a candid conversation.

Tell us about your experience of working for the film in forests?
Prabhu Solomon previously made a film called Kumki and it is a love story where elephant played a key role. After his experience of spending time in forests and understanding elephants, he did 3 years of research on the script of Aranya. The story is based on true incidents.

How different is this film from regular films?
We might have seen love stories and films based on kings and dynasties. But, what excited me was the man fights for the earth, and he gets for war against entire society for next generations. He is the noblest person. That’s the reason I jumped on board. Elephants are the reason for forests to grow big.

What kind of preparation underwent for the film?
We went to Thailand 15 days prior to the shoot. We researched for the locations we wanted. We needed to work with 18 elephants. So, to make association with elephants we took training under the supervision of rangers. It’s a whole new experience to walk along with 18 elephants. It has become a routine that I used to go daily and feed and bath elephants. Before that, to understand the nature, the tress, the animals and birds which all are characters in the film, I used to communicate with them. It’s a great experience and I enjoyed every bit of it.

What’s the reason behind titling the film Aranya?
My character name in this movie is Narendra Bhupathi. After being named Forest Man of India, everyone called him Aranya. So we named this movie Aranya. The story is inspired by the lives of Jadav Payeng, known as the Forest Man of India, and Lawrence Anthony, known as the Elephant Whisper.

Why did you show the film to Venkatesh and Sekhar Kammula?
They were the first persons who belived me that I can do any role. With the pride that I did well in the film, I showed it to them.

How do you feel working for this movie?
I feel honor to work with actors like Amitabh Bachchan and Ajith. I feel I’m blessed to get the chance to do this movie.

How was it working with Pawan Kalyan?
Pawan Kalyan is a cool and down to earth person. Every day I am learning something new, while working with him. Pawan is an original thinker. He is a very encouraging person.

What changes that Aranya bring to your life?
Aranya brought me many changes in my life. I got married, after coming back from forests.