Jaan Say to release in early 2023, S Kiran Kumar opens up on the decision to direct, produce the film

Jaan Say, a crime thriller, marks the directorial debut of S Kiran Kumar, who has also written the story and bankrolled it under Krithi Entertainment Productions. Ankith Koyya and Thanvi essay pivotal roles in the film that promises to be a mishmash of romance and thrills. The filming of Jaan Say was completed in 22 days and the makers are working on its post-production formalities. While the release date will be announced soon, the filmmaker opened up on his decision to make Jaan Say in a chat recently.

Kiran, a civil engineer, shares he intentionally titled the film Jaan Say, for it has two meanings - as an expression of love in Hindi and the true calling of the heart in English (with the word Say). His love for storytelling through the visual medium convinced him to turn a director. Jaan Say’s story was reportedly on his mind for over 9 years though he finished writing the bound script only six months ago. He calls himself a risktaker, while elaborating on the decision to direct it without any prior industry experience.

Many had their doubts about his ability to direct a film, but he thanks his cast and crew that believed in him fully through the shoot. While he didn’t know anything about camera angles, close-ups and other filmmaking nuances initially, Kiran enrolled himself in a course to learn more about the craft and later associated with notable technicians in his film. I adapted to the profession like fish to water, he says.

The filmmaker claims to be a fan of director Puri Jagannadh though he aims to leave behind his imprint in all his films. Jaan Say will be rooted in reality and discuss contemporary issues through fictional characters. Kiran ambitiously says the female character has the brain of Mokshagundam Viswesvarayya and the courage of a Jhansi Lakshmibai. “The USP of the film is the story and we are planning an extensive promotion campaign to bring audiences to theatres,” he adds.

The biggest challenge for him with Jaan Say was to choose the right people who understand his vision and complete their task as per schedule. Jaan Say is expected to release in the first half of 2023 and will have three songs including a theme number, all composed by Sachin Kamal. Thanikella Bharani, Surya, Ajay, Benarjee, iDream Anjali also essay supporting roles in the project. The three dots in the title are apparently an indication of the main characters that the film is based on.