Karan Johar talks about working on a budget and sharing the stage with Anurag Kashyap.
Four of the industry’s top directors — Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap and Karan Johar — have come together to make four short films. ‘Bombay Talkies’ releases on May 3.
Karan Johar is very clear about not bringing 100 years of films together in just two hours’ time, “We are not trying to bring 100 years of films in two hours. We are not representing or depicting Indian cinema. We are trying to depict our individual passion for cinema. It is the ethos of four filmmakers coming together to celebrate cinema. We all have our individual styles. It is all about emotions. It is about four protagonists and their journey.”
When asked about different shades in the films he says, “This is not a Nerolac colored film. We are showing our emotions, passion and our stories. Every story is different, barring a common aspect. There is some kind of minor mention of cinema in little doses.” He adds, “We didn’t have the budget. We couldn’t use chandeliers. I have never done a film in such a small budget. It was quite challenging.”
On not casting Shah Rukh Karan he says, “I did this film to feel different and make a difference. Shah Rukh is a part of my system. The film is true to its characters and world. I love SRK and working with him in any space is my privilege. But every actor has his own space so I couldn’t cast him.”
Karan talks about how he loved the nine-day shoot schedule he had. “It was traumatic on various levels. Making a film with Dibakar, Anurag and Zoya I was conscious.
I wanted to be loved by critics, intellectuals and cinema connoisseurs. I have prayed and I cried because these filmmakers have got it. They have got four to five stars reviews whereas I have managed to get stars after a lot of hue and cry. I was scared sharing the same platform. I have never made a film in such a small budget. I am the hugest liability. Brevity is not my strength. My films are long and so are my budgets and timings. I am very long winded. Everything in my life is long (pun intended). I had to really love what I did. These nine days were special to me.”
Karan adds, “I was obsessed by what others were doing and how many days they were shooting for and what they had shot. I am very competitive. But when we went to Zoya’s house to watch the film at the end there was just love. Emotion and passion overrides everything. I wanted to know if Anurag shot the film in five days. Zoya took nine. Dibakar was the sneakiest, he never let us know what he was doing or what and where he shot. I tried to find but my production gave me a tough time over it.”
On the market for short films he says, “The market is very limited for documentary and short films. I don’t think there is large market or commercial space.”
On the process of filmmaking he says, “Choosing actors depended on screenplay. My story is about scattered relationships. My casting director Shanu Sharma ideated along with me. I am grateful to the actors who came on board.”
Karan is sure these short films are not being made for the box office. “Box office collections are important. These films are not meant to get box office figures. But we are definitely looking forward to people to coming and watch them. If I was producing this film I would not bother about the box office success or failure. We would love if it ranks amongst the ten top hits though.”
Lipika Varma
