'Anando Brahma' director Mahi V Raghav has made two pro-YSP films so far: 'Yatra' and 'Yatra 2'. In recent days, his proposed mini studio in Chittoor's Madanapalle has been dragged into a controversy. The director, who also owns a production house, has responded to some allegations by saying that he has never been motivated by profit-making.
"If my intention was not to contribute to my region (referring to Rayalaseema), I would have requested the government for land to build a studio in Hyderabad or Vizag. Why would I want to build a studio at Madanapalle, a backward area?" he said in a statement. The YSRCP government has allocated two acres of land at Horsley Hills, Madanapalle for the proposed studio.
He said that 'Paathasala' (his 2014 movie), 'Yatra 2', 'Siddha Lokamela Undi Nayana' (Shraddha Srinath's satirical drama), and 'Shaitan' (the Disney Plus Hotstar series) were shot in the Rayalaseema region because he wanted to spend money in the region for multiplier effects. "I wanted the locals to benefit," he added.
Mahi said that he didn't ask for 50 or 100 acres from the AP government towards the construction of the studio.
'Yatra 2', meanwhile, has become a colossal disaster. It didn't find takers in Andhra Pradesh, the target audience.
