Don’t say I didn’t warn you, after watching the movie,” he says. Even before you start thinking... tall claim...? Ram Gopal Varma comes up with “we are planning to give Rs 5 lakh to anyone who watches the movie alone. Technicalities are being worked upon and we will announce the contest a week before the release.”

The director, who was in the City to unveil the first look of Phoonk, his movie on black magic, is a confident man. “Phoonk is a scary movie. The fear element will plague your belief system and put you in a state where you’ll start fearing objects that you may normally take for granted.”

 But does the man himself believe in superstitions? “Well, I’m too small to comment on a force that is being debated worldover. I’ll just say that it is superstitions until it happens to you. And no, I definitely would not want to believe in any such thing.”

 He continues.  “However, there are instances where we hear or experience things that don’t have a rational explanation. Phoonk centres around one such atheist Rajiv, whose convictions are tested when dark forces enter his happy home. Can you stand up to your convictions when your loved ones are being threatened by forces that your rational mind refuses to accept, is what we are trying to get an answer for.”

But does the movie carry the threat of propagating black magic? “We are not creating something, but just narrating things that already exist,” defends producer Azam Khan. Khan is not only very excited about the movie, but also impressed with Kichcha’s performance. ‘’Sudeep is good in the movie. His acting and screen presence in My Autograph really impressed us. In fact, we are looking at signing him for more projects,’’ he adds.

Sudeep is also maha thrilled with his debut bollywood venture. “Not because it is my first Hindi movie, but because I got a chance to work with a great like Ram Gopal Verma,” he says. “I was not scared of facing the camera, but my director. It was a good experience and language was a non-issue. But I must say that the set-up there is quite different. There the market is huge and  budget’s big. Also people are very professional and it’s just about coming to the sets, doing your job and leaving.”

And the set-up seems to be working just fine for the actor for he will be working in another project with Ramu. “This will be an action flick, more of Satya type,” he reveals. This apart, Sudeep will be seen in Veera Madakari and another Kannada film.

 As of now, however, the actor is looking forward to the release of Phoonk. Before he signs off, is he superstitious? ‘’I just believe in my work,” he says.

Shruti I L