Shooting for 143 I Love You in progress at Chandaka, on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. The makers want to release the film during the festival of Raja in June. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, April 10: The festival of Raja may be still a couple of months away, but film-makers seem to have geared up to woo viewers for the peak season in June.

The shooting for 143 I Love You, the mahurat of which was held last month, is on in Bhubaneswar. The crew is positive that the movie will be ready for release by the Raja deadline.

The Babushan-starrer, a romantic comedy with a blend of drama, stars actress Koyal, Sidhant Mohapatra, Namrata, Mihir Das, Meenaketan, Hari and child artist Rahul. Revolving around two love stories, a portion of the movie is based on life in a slum. The shooting is on in Kalinga Studio where a huge set of a slum has been created.

The crew visited hill stations last week to shoot a few song sequences.

“Hill stations offer scenic locations as well as an escape route from the heat in the state. So, we went to shoot in Manali,” said producer Sanjay Nayak, the forerunner of the well-known Brajraj Movies banner that is credited with hits such as Nagaphasa, Jajabara, I Love You and many more. Nayak, who has written the story for the film, said a few song sequences have already been shot in the city and the action and drama scenes are being shot now.

The actors seem to be enjoying the shoot. “Although shooting in Manali was an enjoyable experience, it is fun to work in Orissa since a crowd gathers here to watch us and encourages and cheers every move. That gives the artiste more energy to perform,” said Babushan.

The cameraman for the film is Sitanshu Mohapatra from Mumbai while Ashok Pati is the director.

“We have only two months in hand before Raja, when we aim to release the film. With the hardworking and passionate actors we have, we are sure to make it by the deadline,” said Pati.

Talking about the storyline, Pati said the film covers different aspects of a love story. “While we are showing the rich-poor divide for one pair, the other pair is about obsession in love. Then we have some rib-tickling comedy essayed by Hari and a negative role by Meenaketan.”

The music for the film has been composed by Gudly Rath.