/> In a sudden and startling move Ram Gopal Varma has decided to convert his next project, the ambitious Amitabh Bachchan-Sudeep-Riteish Deshmukh-Raima Sen media film Rann into a family venture.

In a surprise move on Saturday evening, Ram Gopal Varma decided to join hands with his first cousin Madhu (Ghajini) Mantena.

Mantena will be the sole producer of Varma's Rann, the beginning of a family tie-up that would ensure the profits generated in Varma's company remain within the family.

Mantena and Varma, it should be remembered, parted ways four years ago apparently under a cloud of acrimony.

Ramu denies there was any bitterness towards Madhu. "Madhu was never employed with my company. He was with me because he's my first cousin (Ramu's mother and Madhu's father are siblings).

Over the years he ventured into several business ventures independent of me. He never worked for me, just helped me out. Rann will be the first time Madhu's on board as my official producer for Rann. "

The partnerhip has deep financial ramifications in the light of Mantena's monstrous success as a producer in Ghajini.

Says Ramu, "Madhu has done Ghajini and now he's producing Abbas Tyrewala's next film. He'll be the sole producer on Rann. We've been discussing it for a while. We decided to go ahead with the partnership on Saturday. But please the success of Ghajini has nothing to do with my decision. "

Ramu laughingly admits his money would remain safe now. "For me it's very important to focus on making films. This becomes hard when you don't have someone to take care of the nitty-gritty. '

Obviously Ramu is looking at bolstering a family empire.

Rann which starts shooting on Feb 10 will be shot non-stop in two months.

"We'll release in July," informs Ramu. "The cast has already been announced. It remains unchanged. Amitabh Bachchchan, Riteish Deshmukh, Paresh Rawal, Sudeep, Raima Sen, Gul Panag, Mohnish Bhel, Rajpal Yadav. "

Speculation is that Amitabh Bachchan's character is based on media baron Ramnath Goenka. "Mr Bachchan plays a tv baron, not media.

He is the guy who starts India's first tv channel. He plays a respected and feared media personality. But yes, his character is inspired by quite a few media personalities, among them Prannoy Roy and Shekhar Gupta.

Beyond that it's just my imagination. These lives change through a scam. It's got elements of Sarkar, Company, even Baghban. "

And yes Rann will have songs. It will be shot by Amit Roy who shot Ramu's Company. Continues Ramu, "It will be a genre-motivated film. It has a wide array of characters. It belongs more in the Satya than the Sarkar genre.

It's about greed jealously emotions and relationships. It's got characters taken from the media and business circles and politicians. The style will be unique. "

The father-son relationship will be very strong in Rann. Surprisingly Ramu didn't get Abhishek Bachchan to play his own father's son.

"They've been seen together so often. There was no dramatic conflict between father and son in Sarkar so casting the Bachchans together made sense. But a father-son relationship with the two seems fake to me in Rann since it involves a lot of drama. I've chosen the Kannada actor Sudeep from Phoonk to play Mr Bachchan's son. He has the look of the lanky brooding early Amitabh Bachchan. "

The other alternative was KayKay Menon. "But he had played Mr Bachchan's bad son in Sarkar and had been killed in the film. "

Adds Madhu Mantena, "After Ghajini everyone kept asking me what next. To produce a film for my cousin who happens to be Ram Gopal Varma is a dream come true. "