Post unlock, Yoodlee Films is first to start shooting for two feature films

Its been a busy last few months for the Yoodlee team. Notwithstanding the looming pandemic, the young film studio from the Saregama stable has released two direct to digital films – Axone and Chaman Bahaar, on a popular OTT platform,  to great acclaim. And now, after weeks of sizing up its curative and creative artillery against the pandemic, Yoodlee Films will be the first production studio off the blocks to start shooting for two full-fledged feature films. The first one is a film titled Comedy Couple – touted as India’s first com-rom,  starring  Saqib Salim and  Shweta Basu Prasad, in Mumbai and is directed by Nachiket Samant. The second is a Marathi film - Zombivali –  a horror comedy directed by Aditya Sarpotdar and starring popular Marathi stars Amey Wagh, Lalit Prabhakar and Vaidehi Parshurami, which will be starting shoot next week in Latur.  The production dynamics have been chalked out to the most meticulous of details,  with the set being armoured with the most extensive of precautionary measures against the pandemic.

  Siddharth Anand Kumar, Vice-President, Films and Events, Saregama, people from the production house have been in touch with health-care experts to monitor every shooting schedule. In fact, they have designated a ‘COVID Officer’ on the set, who is in charge of ensuring the strictest measures of hygiene and sanitization is followed. “We have employed specialised personnel on the sets who are responsible that all health and safety measures are followed to the T, by everyone. Though we have masks, face shields, and sanitisation tunnels in place, these COVID officers will reinforce our safety efforts. COVID is a reality we are all grappling with, but to mouth, the cliché – the show must go on, albeit with a twist here and there !” said Kumar. He added that at no point can the team at Yoodlee Films relax even after all the measures are in place. “We are always on the lookout for even the slightest of symptoms and we will tackle them on a war footing but with a calm, rational approach”

For director Nachiket Samant of Comedy Couple, shooting post the lockdown is new and intriguing. “It's a great feeling to get back on sets! Shooting in this time is a different experience all together, - a curiously strange one given the situation we find ourselves in.  But Yoodlee Films are taking all precautions, and safety  for all to the highest standard is being ensured. The actors and crew are a great sport too, making it a unique and fun experience!

Comedy Couple, as a movie, was born out of the lockdown, so to speak. Online auditions were conducted and much of the star cast was finalised ‘virtually.’ This helped Yoodlee Films reach out to a larger talent pool and track the best out there.

In less than three years, Yoodlee Films has produced 15 films, breaking barriers of content and languages, with productions in Malayalam, Tamil, and Marathi, apart from Hindi. Its presence on OTT platforms is a formidable one, with all their films finding a release here, with four of them being originals on Netflix and Hotstar. While its films like Hamid went on to bag two National Awards, recent ones like Axone and Chaman Bahar topped the OTT charts.