Saaho

Saaho
File:Saaho movie first look.jpg First look poster
Directed by	Sujeeth
Written by	Sujeeth
Produced by	V. Vamsi Krishna Reddy Pramod
Starring	Prabhas Shraddha Kapoor Arun Vijay Neil Nitin Mukesh Jackie Shroff
Cinematography	R. Madhi
Edited by	A. Sreekar Prasad
Music by	Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy
Production company	UV Creations
Release date	20 April 2018
Country	India
Languages	Telugu Tamil Hindi
Budget	₹ 150 Crores

Saaho is an upcoming trilingual Indian action thriller film written and directed by Sujeeth and produced by UV Creations. The film stars Prabhas and Shraddha Kapoor and is being shot simultaneously in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi. Filming began in June 2017. Saaho's first look poster released on 23 October 2017, on the occasion of Prabhas' birthday.

Cast

• Prabhas as Saaho
• Shraddha Kapoor as Kavya
• Mandira Bedi as Kalki
• Arun Vijay
• Adam Ali
• Jackie Shroff
• Lal
• Neil Nitin Mukesh
• Mahesh Manjrekar
• Tinnu Anand
• Arun Vijay

Production & Filming

The film was shot extensively in locations like Hyderabad, Mumbai Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Romania and Europe. The filming for the movie began in August 2017. Actors like Jackie Shroff, Lal, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Mandira Bedi were roped in along with the leads, Prabhas and Shraddha Kapoor. A better part of the budget was spend to shoot some action scenes for the film. Also, international actor Kenny Bates had been zeroed to supervise the major action scenes.

The first schedule of the film in Hyderabad was completed in October 2017. The second schedule of the film started in December 2017 at Ramoji Film Studio. According to the producers of the film, the actress Shraddha Kapoor, for which Saaho marks her Telegu debut, has shot action sequences in the film with heavy weaponry. The actor Neil Nitin Mukesh plays the prime antagonist and actors like Jackie Shroff and Chunkey Pandey will be seen in supporting roles. The third schedule began in January 2018 in Hyderabad and Mumbai which after lasting for a few days, shifted to Dubai for a month wherein some major action sequences were shot with actors Prabhas and Neil Nitin Mukesh. Meanwhile, Shraddha Kapoor switched to her next venture, Stree along with Rajkummar Rao. After shooting half of the film in locations of Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Dubai, the cast and crew of Saaho began with the fourth schedule of the film in Abu Dhabi in February 2018 to shoot the rest of the film. An action sequence in the film which has to be featured in an exceptional long time in the screenplay of the film, was shot extensively near Burj Khalifa during this schedule for which 25 Crores from the budget had been allotted. Apparently, Prabhas had gone under rigorous training for the same. His preparation involved cardiovascular training, weight training and plyometric obstacle races. Prabhas, on the other side praising his co-star Shraddha Kapoor, said that she is the best choice for the film. Her character is very important and adds a lot of weight to the story of the film. She had shot some amazing action sequences for the film and holds a strong character in the film whereas Prabhas' character is a grey-shaded fictitious role. He plays the character of a cop which will keep the audience guessing until the end.

Also, Saaho would feature some underwater sequences with Prabhas and for the same, Prabhas had learnt scuba diving. Saaho marks the Bollywood debut for Prabhas and the Tollywood debut for Shraddha Kapoor. The two actors have decided to help each other with Hindi and Telegu respectively. The actors will have their own private professional language tutors but they still felt to converse in the language they're weaker in. Saaho will be shot in Hindi and Telegu simultaneously. It has also came into light that Shraddha's lines in Telegu version will be dubbed for some parts because of the particularity about the diction of the language. Directed by Sujeeth, the movie will feature Bollywood actor Neil Nitin Mukesh as the antagonist. Not only Neil, but TV and Bollywood actress Mandira Bedi, who is known for her grey roles on small screen, will play an out and out negative role in the film. Mandira Bedi is one such versatile actress who has donned the hats of actress, fashion designer, television presenter and more during her two decade old career.

Casting

Director Sujeeth roped Prabhas in the venture already post the grand successes of the magnum-opus Baahubali series. The makers moved to actresses like Katrina Kaif, Pooja Hegde, Sonam Kapoor and Alia Bhatt to play the role of Kavya (Shraddha Kapoor). Earlier, there were reports about actress Anushka Shetty to be roped in for the project. The makers confirmed about Anushka Shetty to have been zeroed for the film. However, the uncompromising team and the bulky look of Anushka Shetty resulted in zeroing down a Bollywood actress instead. It is said that the actress had failed to reduce her weight down to fit the bill of the action film's female lead, resulting in Anushka losing out on this big ticket. Reportedly, Anushka had taken to Yoga and other weight-loss programme to shed the weight she gained for 'Size Zero'. Later, in July 2017, Shraddha Kapoor was roped in to play the lead role.

Promotion & Marketing

The mega-action film is made on a high-budget of 150 Crores which includes the use of VFX. The teaser of the film was released earlier in April 2017 along with the release of Prabhas' previous magnum opus Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, a sequel to Baahubali: The Beginning. The first look of the film was revealed on 23 October 2017 on the occasion of Prabhas' birthday. Saaho’s first look poster showcases a mysterious Prabhas donning a mask covering his face that serves as a perfect tease to the masses. Against the backdrop of skyscrapers and a crime scene like set up, Prabhas is seen leading a poised walk. The mystique poster further raises anticipation levels by keeping the viewer guessing about Prabhas’ character and the genre of the film. Six months after delivering India’s biggest blockbuster Baahubali, Prabhas is back with his upcoming trilingual Saaho. The makers had made a sensational announcement of Saaho in late April this year by treating the audience with a phenomenal teaser of the film. Over the months, the project is being largely kept under wraps with little information out in public domain. From prolonged speculation around the female lead of the film that was later announced to be played by Bollywood actress Shraddha Kapoor, to the genre of the film, the team has kept the audiences guessing.

Controversies

It was reported that the makers of Saaho rejected a 240 Crores offered T-Series for the theatrical rights of the film in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi. Impressed over the content and the star value of Saaho, T Series reportedly came up with the whopping deal but the producers have declined the offer, stating that that they were expecting over Rs. 270 Crores. Later, it was reported that the music rights of the film had been given to Zee Music Company.

Also, a huge controversy arose when the first look of Saaho was suspected similar to the poster of Ryan Goslings' Blade Runner 2049 and its uncanny resemblance to the poster put down the buzz for its poster. Many fans and followers criticized this blatant plagiarism of the first look.

Soundtrack

The music rights of the film are acquired by Zee Music Company. Reportedly the trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy have been roped for the music of the film. It is reported that Shraddha Kapoor and Arun Vijay, who also are the actors in the film will croon their own numbers for the soundtrack.

External links

• Saaho at IMDb