India’s most suave, most stylish and wittiest director-producer is in Mumbai after months of living out of a suitcase in London, New York and SFO.But his travels (and travails) have only made that razor-tongue sharper than ever.
He talks here about postponing My Name Is Khan, his so-called problems with Kajol, comments on Salman, the Bachchans and SRK and how he intends to Wake Up Sid — his newest baby. Read on for the KJo challenge!
The big news is that you’ve delayed My Name Is Khan...
You know, it was beyond our control. Now the film is only releasing early next year. We couldn’t have made it in time, we were very keen to release it this December, but there’s a lot of work on this film. I just felt that rushing it would lead to many compromises on a creative level. So both SRK and I took a combined call to push it to next year.
There were reports that Kajol wasn’t all cooperation for your schedules?
Both Kajol and I have laughed at this absurdity. In December when we were shooting in LA, we read Tanu aunty was objecting to some lines that were cut, and that Kajol and I were having this cold war. It’s so ridiculous that it doesn’t even warrant a response.
My Name Is Khan is your first co-production with SRK. How did that happen?
It’s a powerful project, something we felt very strongly enough about to come together. At the end of day, this is one film that hopefully both of us should always own. Whether or not SRK and I share a film, we own them together in any case. Truly for me, I own OSO as much as SRK owns Dostana.
You’ve cast Konkana and Ranbir in your next film, Wake Up Sid. Most feel they’re mismatched...
I wouldn’t call it a mismatch. I’d call it an ‘unconventional’ casting. Konkana is established and associated with a certain kind of cinema and Ranbir is young, upcoming and attached to a certain demographic as an actor. When you see them, you know they have sparkling chemistry.
There was a report that the Bachchans were upset that you didn’t cast Abhishek in the remake of Agneepath.
Agneepath is not cast at all. It’s an idea Karan Malhotra — my AD on MNIK, who’s directing Agneepath for me, has. He’s still scripting it. We’ve not cast for it at all. Once the script is ready, we’ll think of casting. We had an internal conversation, which leaked out, I have no idea how. Everybody started conjecturing on their own about people in the film.
Salman recently said he’d never do a ‘John act’ in Dostana? Do you take it personally?
Never. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and their thoughts are their prerogative. I’ve had many other stars and directors comment on my cinema. I don’t ever take it to heart.
Your take on the Khan wars?
Let me tell you, a lot of this may be true, but a lot of it is not. Most is created to make it more dramatic. A lot of it is exaggerated and enhanced in print, and sometimes it becomes worse because things sound much worse on paper and people start taking the lie as the truth and that’s when things bother me. I don’t get involved and I don’t fight with people. Actually, I’m bored, I’m seriously waiting for a filmmaker or actor to pick on me, so that I can retort back!
