’. But the director, who made a grand entry with Cheluveye Ninna Nodalu, says that in this case, CM does not mean chief minister! Instead, it stands for the common man.

Shivrajkumar, he says, will be playing the role of an educated auto driver. “In his career spanning 100 films, Shivanna has never played the role of an auto driver. We often see many auto drivers who always keep a stack of newspapers by their side and read them whenever they get a chance. That is what Shivanna will portray,” says Raghuram.

The director has even planned a special photoshoot, which will be shot with the common people. “I don’t want to do a typical shoot inside a studio. Instead, we are going to take Shivanna to many public locations and get candid shots out there with him mingling with the common man,” he says.

Like his earlier film, this too will be a love story with a political backdrop. If grapevine is to be believed, then Trisha will be playing Shivanna’s love interest in the movie. “Yes, we have sent her the script and she has liked the film but we are still working out the dates and hopefully, things will fall in place soon,” he confirms.

Interestingly, Kichcha Sudeep and Shankere Gowda will be producing the film. “It was Sudeep’s wish to produce a Shivanna film. When I had approached Shankere Gowda with this project, he immediately called Sudeep and told him about it and both were on board. His support and involvement as a producer has been very encouraging so far,” says Raghuram.  

With the script and pre-production work still in progress, Raghuram says he is making sure that he overcomes all of his mistakes and challenges through this film. He had showcased the seven wonders of the world in his last film and now wants to highlight the beautiful places of the State in this film. “Our State has beautiful locations and that’s what I want to bring out. That’s why a majority of the film will be shot here itself. We will start shoot as soon as we finalise on things,” he signs off.