Exclusive! Dhananjaya addresses the ‘lack of promotions’ buzz about Head Bush

In early June this year, Daali Dhananjaya announced that his second venture as producer, Head Bush – The Rise and Rise of Bengaluru, which is the first instalment in the MP Jayaraj biopic saga, would be in theatres on October 21, in time for the Deepavali festivities (read long weekend). But as the days wore on, there was no news from his team about the film, prompting fans and netizens to wonder if he was looking at postponing its release much like Once Upon A Time in Jamaligudda and Hoysala.

OTTplay spoke to Dhananjaya in the run-up to the release of Head Bush and asked him if he’s aware of the discussions on social media about the lack of buzz for his latest film. Nodding in the affirmative, the actor explained why fans think he’s not done enough, unlike Badava Rascal. “Let me explain this. Badava Rascal was a December release, but our product was ready much before that. In fact, it had been censored even before Salaga, which came out in mid-October. So, we had a lot of time to release promotional content, including songs, which were well accepted. After the content came out, we started promotions. But yes, we had enough time to plan and strategize publicity. As for Head Bush, well, it’s not that we aren’t promoting it, we are. Like for instance, when I went into the airport dressed as my character Jayaraj. What we have to understand here is that the buzz on social media and out in the field is entirely different. Most of my fans don’t even know how to use Twitter. But I can understand why some think there’s no buzz. Kantara fever is still on and Gandhada Gudi is coming in a week’s time. Some of them are saying it out of genuine concern, in the hope that we pull up our socks, but some are there just to spread negativity online. I see all of it, because they tag me in these comments. I think every actor does check what is being said and done about their films,” he says.

Dhananjaya adds, “With Head Bush, we announced the date and had to work within a certain limited time frame. Amid putting the film together, we were not able to promote it as much as we’d hoped to. The buzz will be created once some content comes out, like the songs, Rowdigalu or Habibi, which created some curiosity. But what makes audiences decide whether to watch a film or not is the trailer, which we could not release earlier. It came out with only five days to go for the release and was delayed even on that day. The issue was that there is so much content in this film, that it became difficult to figure out what to pick up and highlight. In fact, we had a cut ready, but once the music came in, we felt it needed to be presented differently. The trailer was to be released at 10 am, and the night before, we were still reworking it. I was so tensed when the trailer release was delayed and then realized that the #HeadBush was trending in India because of the delay (laughs).”

The actor-producer adds that the delay in beginning promotions was not intentional but reckons that it is the content that should do the talking. “There is a limit to what you can do with promotions for different films. Irrespective of how much you promote a film, ultimately, only the strength of the content will bring audiences to theatres. We can create awareness about the film with publicity, but if the content does not match up, no matter what I do, it will all be for nothing,” says Dhananjaya, adding that he is very confident about the content in his film.