Uday Chauhan recently gained widespread attention and critical acclaim for directing the slice-of-life Telugu drama film Pallaburusu which was released in theatres on August 14, 2026. Before making his mainstream debut, he honed his storytelling skills through photography and worked as an assistant director and executive producer. He previously helmed the film Season of Innocence (2022), which travelled to various film festivals.
Palaburusu is a very assured debut for you. Did you always want to direct films?
Yes, I always wanted to get into direction. So, I decided in 2011 and I told my mom that I want to become a film director. And in 2011, I joined Mass Communications in Hyderabad, affiliated to Osmania. After that, I acquired a camera and then started practicing photography. So, I was learning lighting then. Slowly, my interest got developed more into writing. So, I started writing then. And so, yeah, I always wanted to be in the arts. Since childhood, I was in the school when I used to do theater in school and also many stage performances as dancer. And I wanted to make films, as cinema definitely affects people.
Your film addresses the perennial problem of parental neglect; how much of it is inspired by your own life and experiences?
I was not ignored as a child, for sure. My parents were always there with me. They made sure that I choose the right things and doing all the right things. This film is more personal to me that I have seen very personally that, you know, the parents are neglected in the villages. One image that struck me – one day when I was going back to home was that of an old man around 70 years old who sat in a graveyard sobbing so much, he was crying like hell. I realized that his wife has been dead a few days back and he was sobbing so much and I was thinking that image struck with me for a long time. So, that’s where that image made me start think about it subconsciously. It was always there with me, and I was thinking, how can I do something for these lonely aging people in the villages? The parents stay, and the children leave for a better future.
Was it hard to find your cast?
When I write, I don’t think about who should I cast. Eventually, it was difficult for me to find the actors in the Telugu industry who are in this age group. So, it was challenging for me, but somehow, when I was jotting down the options, I felt these two actors, Sudhakar Reddy and Muralidhar Gaud, were like the right artists; they knew the language of Telangana and what we wanted to do. So, once I felt this was the combination, there was no looking back. I thought, yes, these two people are the best for this film, and they delivered the best. We did twelve days of workshops.
Your film is a refreshing departure from Telugu cinema’s obsession with a spectacle and mythology?
I have grown up on all those kinds of films. So, I always feel that I think that has its own kind of audience that enjoys it. So, I respect that for sure, but I also feel there should be some feel-good, sweet films.
Do you think the urban India is losing his connection with his family roots?
I think, as a millennial, I have grown up in the village, and I preserve the memories from the village that I cherish from before the digital era. I feel digital before the digital era the people were more peaceful, they were more empathic. I feel the generation is losing its family roots, but maybe our Indian festivals are there to make them get together.
Was it difficult for you to put together the project?
When I wrote it I always saw it as a challenge as to how should I approach the production houses because this film doesn’t have the commercial elements in it. I was a little skeptical as to how I should find a right producer. The journey slowly improved as when I started pitching it to Annapurna Studios. So, patience was the key for me.
Your next project?
I don’t know; that would be something that triggers me. There are a couple of concepts that I already have, and definitely, and I’m going to seem very different again; my voice is going to be very different, and the topics that I’m going to choose are going to be very different.
