PremiumMithya director Sumanth Bhat: ‘I will not do another film like this until…’
Mithya, which has been produced by Rakshit Shetty, was a festival darling, but whether or not it will draw a theatrical audience is a challenge that director Sumanth Bhat faces on March 7
Last Updated: 06.49 PM, Mar 06, 2025
Mithya, which is releasing in theatres on March 7 is not a children’s film, even though the protagonist is an 11-year-old boy and some of the other main characters are also played by kids. “In terms of the story and theme, Mithya is a complex film. I am not sure how far children as audiences will be able to connect with the emotions at play in the film. Mithya is a film with kids for adults,” explained debutant director Sumanth Bhat, about the film produced by Rakshit Shetty, during an X Space promotional discussion.
A film like Mithya could only be made as a debut venture, reasons Sumanth, explaining that it is possible only when one is not aware of the intricacies of the business of cinema. “You come with a very romantic notion that you want to tell a story the way you want to. Such a film is more often the most honest one, because then, a filmmaker is not corrupted by the commercial aspects of cinema – in terms of making it for a specific audience, casting a known actor, using popular music/songs,” says the filmmaker.
Sumanth Bhat: Getting people to theatres for a film like Mithya is difficult
While Sumanth is currently working on getting his sophomore film on grounds, he is clear that it cannot be anything like Mithya or his web series Ekam. “I will not do another film like Mithya now, because cinema is commerce first and art later; which I realized the hard way. But that is the harsh reality – getting people to theatres for a film like Mithya is very difficult,” says Sumanth.
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After travelling with the film for 2 years (to various festivals), Sumanth says he’s realized that people are liking the content. “But at some point, it has to also translate into numbers – people should come to theatres. Until that happens, there will be some level of anxiety,” he says. The filmmaker adds that thanks to Rakshit, they are at least able to make the effort to push the film to theatres.
“Mithya may not be success, but that a film like this is getting a mainstream release will give a lot of people confidence and then, when more movies like this come to theatres and people go to watch them, a change will happen. Right now, though, I will not do another film like Mithya until I earn an audience and can confidently tell such a story and make it commercially viable. Once that happens, I will go back to making films like this,” he says.