Singeetham Srinivasa Rao's unmade 62nd film was titled A Fruit Cuts the Knife

Veteran director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao, one of Indian cinema's boldest experimenters, passed away on Saturday night. Reports put his age at 94 or 95 and say he died at Kauvery Hospital in Chennai. Even in his last months, he was reportedly planning yet another film.

That plan has now come to light through his disciple Nag Ashwin, the director of Mahanati and Kalki 2898 AD. According to reports, Singeetham shared the title of his next project in a WhatsApp group chat the two were part of: A Fruit Cuts the Knife. The name alone hints at the strange and playful worlds he was still dreaming up.

His latest release was Sing Geetham, a musical fantasy that came out this June. Reports describe it as his 61st film and say Nag Ashwin ghost directed it out of respect for his mentor. The new idea would have been his 62nd. Whether Nag Ashwin takes the story forward or it stays on paper is not yet known.

Singeetham's career reportedly spanned 54 years and five languages, and he kept trying things few others dared. In 1987 he made Pushpaka Vimanam with Kamal Haasan, Amala and Tinnu Anand, a black comedy with sound and music but no spoken words. Unable to find a backer, he reportedly produced it himself with Kannada producer Shringar Nagaraj. Because it needed no dubbing, it released across languages under different titles and won a National Film Award.

Telugu fans also owe him two landmark Balakrishna films. Aditya 369, from 1991, is described as the first Telugu film with a time machine, sending its characters back to the court of Sri Krishnadevaraya, with S.P. Balasubrahmanyam presenting it. Bhairava Dweepam, a 1994 high fantasy set on an island ruled by a sorcerer, reportedly ran 100 days in 28 centres.

He moved from a comedy without words to time travel to sorcery, and finally to a musical at an age when most have long retired. Singeetham never stopped experimenting. A Fruit Cuts the Knife now stands as the last idea from a filmmaker who was never done.