Private Project

The Lion and The Deer

This film is a dark comedy satire presented as an Indian folk-lore.

"A famous internet influencer recounts his story about his visit to the village - a life-altering past involving more personalities who each have a story of their own to tell."

It deals with these interconnected stories as told in a children’s-storybook-format available in India (like Amara Chitra Katha, Panchatantra comics, etc.), a collection of several short stories with different morals and interpretations.
The film does not answer any questions but looks at it from everyone’s point of view.

EVERYONE HAS A STORY TO TELL.

Note: The film is mixed in 5.1 Surround Sound

  • Hasa Samudrala
    Director
  • Hasa Samudrala
    Writer
  • Deepak Subramanya
    Key Cast
    "Arjun"
  • Kausar Nawaz
    Key Cast
    "Krishna"
  • Sampath Kumar
    Key Cast
    "Sidda"
  • Babu Hirannaiah
    Key Cast
    "Swami"
  • Vaishnavi Ram
    Key Cast
    "Ahalya"
  • Mann Chhatbar
    Key Cast
    "Disha"
  • Arjun Jith
    Associate Director
  • Kiran S
    Casting
  • Prathap Joseph
    Director of Photography
  • Ashwin Hemanth
    Music
  • Ganu DS
    Production Manager
  • Koushik Vishwakarma
    Art Director
  • Vasanth S Karthik
    DI Colorist
  • Naveen Shankar
    Audiography
  • Dharane Gowda
    Lights Department Head
  • Gandhi S
    Sync Sound Head
  • Rekha Jaisimha S
    Make-up
  • Gaurav Kumar
    Production Support
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Comedy, Adventure, Investigative, Dark Comedy, Satire
  • Runtime:
    18 minutes 36 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 20, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    3,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    India
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Language:
    English, Telugu
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Hasa Samudrala

Hasa Samudrala is a 34-year-old independent filmmaker based in Bangalore, India He has worked on short films and other media productions for 11 years now. He has made 6 short films so far, and has won multiple awards locally. The Lion and The Deer is his latest project completed in 2022.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

We wanted to present the film as a Live Action version of a South-Indian folk lore which is performed on the streets but captured for the cinematic medium.

Someone had once asked me - "Do you like Mountains or Beaches?". As much as we love nature as a whole, the thought to find a quick and easy answer possibly results in forcefully choosing these newly formed sides. And as the polarization seems to be on the rise, it can even get consequential when we think as an unwitting collective rather than as a self-realized individual.

Although it is crucial to question, is the question more important than the answer?

This film is a sarcastic take on the same theme. The idea behind the film’s treatment is to deal with such a subject as adventurously and as visually playful as possible.
To keep it unbiased, the visual aesthetic choice was keep it more neutral and distant rather than to be intimate.

The film was made possible together by a team of multi-cultural people of various Indian states who speak completely different languages in India. Though it has been extremely challenging, we are proud to have come together for such a project that is uniquely Indian.