Golden Globes 2023: How ‘Naatu Naatu’ was shot in a palace in Ukraine during the pandemic

Location agent Natarajan Ramji at the Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv, Ukraine, where "Naatu Naatu" was shot in 2021.

M.M. Keeravani’s win at the 80th Golden Globes for Best Original Score is a huge recognition for the veteran composer. The energetic ‘Naatu Naatu’ number from S.S. Rajamouli’s RRR that celebrates India’s cultural identity is among the highlights of the wildly popular film. You’ve heard the song and danced to it, but do you know how it was made?

Keeravani, known as M.M. Kreem in Bollywood and Maragathamani in the Tamil film industry, has composed music for close to 200 films in different languages. ‘Naatu Naatu’, penned by lyricist Chandrabose in Telugu, reportedly took 19 months to write, and Keeravani is said to have composed 10 to 20 variations of it. The song, sung by Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava, went viral instantly when it was released on YouTube. It appears at a pivotal moment in the film when its two heroes (played by Ram Charan and Junior NTR) stand up to a British man who tries to humiliate them.

The dance that accompanies the song was instrumental in furthering its reach. But it was no mean task to shoot it. For one, the coronavirus pandemic was raging across the world in 2021 and many countries had imposed strict travel restrictions. ‘Naatu Naatu’, choreographed by Prem Rakshith and conceived as a ballroom dance, had to look like it was shot in India of the early 1900s since that’s the time period of the film. When veteran location agent Natarajan Ramji got the call from S.S. Rajamouli to help him find a suitable place to shoot the song, he didn’t hesitate to say yes. His daughter’s engagement ceremony was on the cards, but Ramji knew he couldn’t turn down Rajamouli.

“The pandemic struck when the movie was still being made and large portions of it were yet to be filmed, including this very important song. The location for the song had to look like 1900s Delhi. The buildings had to look like they were from that era,” said Ramji.

Apart from actors Ram Charan, Junior NTR and Olivia Morris, Rajamouli wanted at least a hundred British-looking dancers for the song, another hundred Indian junior artists, a 50-piece professional orchestra, and 20 vintage cars – a tall order during the pandemic when governments frowned upon any kind of crowding anywhere. Most importantly, all this had to fit within the budget.

But Ramji, who has visited over 140 countries, knew just the place that would match Rajamouli’s vision – the Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv, Ukraine. It’s the official residence of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and would be perfect for the ‘Naatu Naatu’ song.

Before the war broke out between Russia and Ukraine in February 2022, the country had become the go-to destination for foreign location shoots in the Indian film industries. The largest country in Europe by area, Ukraine offered an economically viable alternative for film shoots when scenes had to be set in foreign locations or to even showcase a different era. Compared to France, the United Kingdom and other countries, Ukraine is much more affordable.

Jr NTR and Ramji during the shooting of Naatu Naatu.

Pre-war, film production was a major draw in Ukraine. According to the Production Service Network, a global video service that exists in 50 countries, the devaluation of the Ukrainian currency which occurred thrice in 2014-15, made the country the hub for low-cost film production in Europe. Ukraine also had relaxed permit arrangements which made it an attractive option for filmmakers on a tight budget. So, if a film was set in Paris, the crew would shoot a few scenes in iconic locations like the Eiffel Tower but shift the rest of the shoot to Ukraine which has similar streets and buildings but is much cheaper.

Two other options in Ukraine that the RRR team explored were the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and a puppet theatre. But it was the Mariinsky Palace that fit the bill. The next problem was that there were no flights to Ukraine from India.

“The first team that was to go to Ukraine all had American visas, so I found a way to make it happen. We flew from Mumbai by Lufthansa. If you have an American visa, you’re allowed to transit through Frankfurt. Otherwise, you can’t even board the flight!” said Ramji.

After multiple RT-PCR tests and lonely airports, they finally made it to Kyiv. Getting approval to shoot at the Mariinsky Palace wasn’t so simple since this is where the President receives important guests, including foreign dignitaries. Ramji and his team went through the Mayor of Kyiv to make it happen. They found a 20-day gap in the schedule during which the Palace wasn’t expecting any VIPs and blocked the dates for the shoot.

Ramji with Ram Charan during the Naatu Naatu shoot.

Dance crews from Ukraine were hired for the shoot, but the RRR team also needed Indian junior artists to perform small roles like bearer, drivers and so on.

“We came to know that more than 30,000 Indian students were doing their medical studies in Ukraine. We contacted one of their associations and asked the students to stand in as extras. We offered them food and the payment that was generally given to junior artists,” said Ramji.

The students, many of whom were from south India, needed no persuasion to join the sets. They knew Ram Charan, Junior NTR and of course, S.S. Rajamouli. Instead of the 150 students they wanted, the team got 300 eager beavers.

The team sourced the costumes from a local warehouse that provided such clothes for theatre and ballet performances. They also had a kitchen with three chefs who were flown in from India. Many of the actors and crew – a total of about 140 – flew in from India just two days before Ukraine was going into lockdown and closed its international borders.

“They put on the lights in the Hyderabad airport just for us,” laughed Ramji, recalling those mad days. He added that the Indian embassy in Ukraine was extremely helpful in making sure that everything went smoothly.

“Rajamouli is a perfectionist, so we had many rehearsals before the song was shot. It took at least 15 days for the ‘Naatu Naatu’ song to be shot, going over it detail by detail. There were at least a thousand people on the sets every day, including the crew, the actors and the dancers,” he said.

From sourcing a grand piano at the last minute for the shoot to making sure people from different nationalities had food that they were comfortable with, Herculean efforts lie behind the iconic song that we see on screen. Keeravani’s win is vindication for the tremendous work put in by the RRR team, and it’s no wonder that they can’t stop going ‘Naatu Naatu’.