I can handle 20-30 crores butnotbigstars

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Abdul Rahman Ansari

@ar78655

Rocker

Posted: 18 years ago

"I can handle 20-30 crores but not big stars" - Sagar Ballary

June 29, 2007 - 12:45 IST

Did you expect BHEJA FRY to be such a big hit?
I didn't expect the film to be such a big hit though I knew that people will like it. I was of the view that if the film runs even for a week or two, it'll be great. The only plan on my mind was that if I make a good film, I will get a producer for my next film.

I was of the view that if the film runs even for a week or two, it'll be great

What do you think worked for the film?
If you present comedy in a new style, the audiences will definitely like it. Comedy is like a favorite dish. If you cook it properly with all the right ingredients, people will surely like it.

It is said that BHEJA FRY is inspired from a French film. How much did you take from that film?
We took the concept of the character of "idiot" from the French film. We have also adapted the structure of the French film. But we changed all the characters and tried to give them an Indian flavor. We also added two songs in the film which the French film-maker would never do. Our production cost, however, was very low compared to the French film. At the core of it, we studied the structure and the spirit of the French film and tried to get it in this film. When you adapt a film, you should pay respect to the original by making the adaptation even better than the original.

You should pay respect to the original by making the adaptation even better than the original

Vinay Pathak, Ranveer Shorey and Rajat Kapoor were seen in MIXED DOUBLES, the film for which you were the associate director. Was it difficult to direct them in your first film?
It was very easy actually. Rajat Kapoor was the associate producer for this film. The producer [Sunil Doshi] once asked Rajat, "Will this boy be able to pull it off?" Rajat said he was extremely confident of my abilities. Ranveer had become a good friend. So, he said 'no matter what kind of role, just give it to me and I will do it'. Besides, I thought that the magic of the Ranveer-Vinay pair, which is famous on television, is not used in films yet, so I should recreate it in my film. Vinay Pathak is a fantastic actor and I was sure that he was going to play the lead role. I had seen Rajat and Vinay's combination on stage and I decided to get that in films. Milind Soman was present at the success party of MIXED DOUBLES. When Sunil Doshi announced the film on the occasion, Milind said that he would want to be part of the film.

For the role of Suman Rao, we wanted a fresh face and that's when Bhairavi came in. Sarika was a boon. In fact, Anurag Kashyap once said that he'd love to remake this [French] film. Then I informed him that I have already developed a screenplay on this. So he gave me some suggestions, one of which was to talk to Sarika for a role. She is back, looks stunning and was our favorite since school days. I met her; she tried to understand the concept of the film and finally agreed.
So, I had an unusual cast in hand and I knew that nothing could go wrong.

I had an unusual cast in hand and I knew that nothing could go wrong

BHEJA FRY is an unusual title. How did you come up with it?
There is a very interesting incident behind it. One fine day, the producer called me up and asked if I had registered a title for the film. I had two titles in mind - DING DONG BABY SING A SONG and DAVAT-E-KHAAS, but people didn't quite like it. I called up the co-writer Arpita Chatterjee to give me a title urgently. She was pregnant back then and got frustrated with my pestering. She just blurted, 'Don't BHEJA FRY me now yaar'. Seconds later, she jumped saying this was the title [BHEJA FRY]. She argued saying this man in the film Bheja Fries the other. I was not so sure about it, but Arpita said to have it as the working title. The producer also liked the title and it just caught on. Then I didn't change it.

You are also planning to direct BHEJA FRY 2?
Not right now, but yes, the film is on cards and I will do it later. That "idiot" is a simple common man and this journey is going to move ahead.

When a particular film succeeds, people try to do something similar for their next film. Are you too planning something similar or are you doing something 'hatke'?
This 'hatke' is a very scary term. But, yes, I want to try out films from all genres. We chose comedy and saw to it how we can make the best of the films. Now, I am working on a children's film titled KACHA LIMBOO. After this I would want to do a love story, then an adult film only for female audiences as I want to understand about women-related issues.

I can handle 20-30 crores of rupees but not big stars

You have signed a 3-film deal with Sahara.
Well, yes. I met Mr. Roy, who heads the film division of Sahara. He is a very young producer and is handling a very big empire. He asked me what my plans were. I said to him that we keep complaining about the quality of films in this country, but we don't do anything about it. The same people then keep making similar kind of films, so when will the change happen? He then asked me what I wanted to make. I told him my plans, but then I also said that this will cost money. He suggested, why one, why not three films? He also gave me the liberty to do these films over the next 2-3 years and with the freedom to do films with somebody else in the meantime.

Generally, after a big hit, directors plan their next film with big stars. But your next film, KACHA LIMBOO does not have any stars. Why?
I am still not ready to make a film with big stars. I can handle 20-30 crores of rupees, but I can't handle a big cast. I am not yet ready to create the kind of environment required for the stars. Besides, this film will focus on technique and story. If big stars come in, it would be impossible to shoot it on Mumbai streets. I will need to arrange for security and other facilities and the flavor of the film will be lost in the process.