Always destined for a career in film industry
LIGHTS, camera, action is what Chatsworth-born filmmaker, Kumaran Naidu’s life is all about, and all the world is his stage.
With more than 15 years in the film industry, Naidu has become a household name, renowned for his comedy and horror movies.
But making films is more than just a job to him, he feels it is divine intervention.
Movies have always been in his blood – his late father, Daya Naidu, opened the first video store in Chatsworth in 1978. Naidu, who was in primary school at the time, had a knack of fixing things like video machines and television sets, and his father hoped he would pursue a career as an electrician.
“I became experienced in minor servicing of the equipment we rented out,” said Naidu. “Back then video machines were first introduced, and not everybody could afford them, so people would hire them. I had a creative mind, and being exposed to the movie world with our video store, I was intrigued by the process of film making. But at that time I knew it would be impossible to pursue it.”
Naidu, 45, grew up in Bayview, Chatsworth – surrounded by a close-knit extended family and community. He matriculated at Protea Secondary School and studied architecture while working part-time at the then Trust Bank (now Absa) in 1991.
He got comfortable in his role at the bank and quit his studies. He said he worked at Absa until 2006 and at the time was the branch administrator.
It was not an easy road to success for Naidu – he started his career in the film industry working at his father’s video store and then running the family business – the popular The Odeon Theatre and Majestic Cinema. While working at Absa he produced and directed his first feature film, Broken Promises, in 2003 “just for fun”.
“From the outside, the film industry looked to be the best thing The House Knows away the fun in making a film.
This is why I prefer to do my films on an independent basis. I have my own equipment and resources to make my own films of a Hollywood standard.”
When Naidu first started in the film industry, he named his company Vollywood Productions – in reference to films shot on video and not traditional 35mm film-stock. He changed the name to Garuda Motion Pictures in 2003.
Naidu is a devotee of the
Hindu God Krishna and has been a member of the Hare Krishna movement since 1991.
He initially set out to tell the stories of the Srimad Bhagavatam, a Hindu scripture. Garuda is the name of the man-eagle that carries Krishna on his back through the universe, said Naidu.
Before Broken Promises, Naidu made two short films in 2002, as a trial run to test out his camera, and get an understanding of filmmaking.
“I am self-taught, and did not attend any college to learn about film making,” he said.
“The films I made first were Livin A Krazee Life and The Adventures Of The Double O’ Charous – which can be found on Youtube. I’ve worked on several TV shows, such as The Man Cave, Real Talk with Anele Mdoda, X-factor SA, Clash of the Choirs, The Big Break Legacy, Wingin’ It, Biting About, and also high level commercials for major brands.”
Over the years Naidu has produced, directed and written nine films – including the Broken Promises series, Run for your Life, The House Knows, and The Curse of Highway Sheila. He said he wanted to make his films relatable, mainly to an Indian audience.
While some say he is limiting his audience, he feels otherwise, saying Indians have amazing stories to tell. Research is of utmost importance to make the story relatable, he added.
“You cannot simply write a story that people will think impossible. It will not resonate well, and will be forgotten,” said Naidu. “American director, Richard Donner, who made the
1978 Superman film said: ‘even though you present a movie with a man flying, if you can make the audience believe it, it would be a hit’. The same applied to The Curse of Highway Sheila, where I had to make the audience believe there are ghosts out there, and also let them understand the myth behind Sheila.”
Next up, Naidu would like to tackle a science fiction film – something he has never done before. He has a vision for a film, but unfortunately the scope isn’t too huge for small budgets. He said many South African storytellers and filmmakers had wonderful ideas, but were restricted to budgets when it came to seeing their story realized.
The other aspect of Naidu’s work is driven by his nurturing up and coming artists. He often gives amateur or inexperienced artists a platform to experiment with their talent on the set of his films – helping them launch their acting careers.
He is now preparing to shoot for Broken Promises Vengeance and will be looking into a sequel to The Curse of Highway Sheila for later this year. He also has two major action comedies lined up for early next year.
“The local film industry is a tough one, but you have to be sensible,” he said.
“One has to have alternative income, whether it is a part time or full time job. In this industry, you can have work for three months, and then have nothing for two years. I used to freelance a lot, but now I am able to concentrate full time on films.
“I am more of a Jack of all trades and a master of most – when it comes to making films. I was able to keep the cost of my productions down, as I do most of the heavy lifting – from writing, pre-production, directing and producing, camera-work, editing, visual effects, sound mixing and final delivery.
“These skills have made it Broken Promises 3 easier to do films quicker and on a much lower budget. I am now able to get more people involved in things like camera-work, preproduction and so on. However I do still write my own scripts and direct them.”
Naidu said the biggest challenge for a local actor was finding work – as there aren’t that many productions happening. It is worse Broken Promises. for an actor who doesn’t have another job to fall back on. “Acting is never a permanent job, it’s always freelance,” he said.
Learning life’s lessons from the elders, Naidu said his father’s friend, the late Sam Naidoo, taught him an important lesson that he has made his life mantra. Naidoo made him realise than anything man-made could be altered and improved.
Naidu has earned a respected name in the film industry locally and abroad, but said that despite his success he prided himself in being humble.
Naidu lives with his wife Fiona, 41, and their two children Sudarshan, 10, and Maheshan Naidu, 6, in Roodepoort, Johannesburg.