“The Arjun Reddy universe is Bala’s backyard. It’s pretty much his debut film, Sethu. The one-liner is the same: A misanthropic, alpha male forces a meek woman to submit to his ‘pure love’, and when it all goes to hell, he becomes deranged. Given the inherent melancholy and madness in this subject—Bala’s playthings—the question was, how would he reinterpret this story that is right up his alley?”