Pawan Kumar: Dvitva will happen at some point when we find the right person for the lead role

When Lucia and U-Turn maker Pawan Kumar announced a collaboration with Power Star Puneeth Rajkumar called Dvitva, it had everyone in Sandalwood take note. This was seen as a momentous occasion, one that would take Puneeth’s career trajectory on a different direction, away from the regular commercial mass outings.

Dvitva was to take off in the second half of 2021, just as Puneeth was winding up work on the Chethan Kumar directorial. But then Pawan tested positive for Covid-19 and was out of action for bit. Within a month of his recovery and announcement that he’d resumed pre-production on Dvitva, Puneeth tragically passed away.

At the time, many wondered if Dvitva will remain an unfulfilled dream for Pawan. On Puneeth’s first posthumous birthday this year, the filmmaker had shared a screenshot of a Whatsapp conversation with the actor about the buzz that their collaboration was generating. Alongside, Pawan shared a note, part of which read, “I am glad that all my memories with him have been about making great films... I am glad that he felt I was worthy to share those dreams with me.. it's a huge privilege. The man has left... But he told many of us his dreams... And maybe it is a responsibility to not just miss him or remember him.. but to make those dreams come true... Maybe that's why he kept telling it out .. so we know we got to do it. Make good cinema.. good work.. that's all he wanted to do.”

This was seen as Pawan’s way of saying that he would still go ahead and make Dvitva at some point as a tribute to Puneeth and his desire to make good films. This was reaffirmed recently at the pre-release event of Pawan’s film as an actor, Gaalipata 2, on the side lines of which he was asked about Dvitva. The filmmaker said that he was not looking at ‘forcing it’. “It will happen when it has to happen. Once we find someone who is just right for the role and the film, then we will revisit the idea of making Dvitva,” he was quoted as saying.