The trailer of Kajol’s upcoming film Salaam Venky was launched at an event in Mumbai on November 14. The film is directed by Revathy and also stars Vishal Jethwa as Venkatesh aka Venky. The Free Press Journal was present at the do.
Opening up about Salaam Venky, Kajol shares, “I refused the film for three days. I was like, ‘I am not doing this film, I don’t want to do a film in which anything happens to my children’. I cannot handle that. It’s every parent’s worst nightmare, you wouldn’t even wish this on your enemy, it’s that kind of a situation. Revathy then said, ‘Just think about it’. I then spent 10 minutes being a full fan of Revathy ma’am. When you watch the film, you'll realise who the real star of the film is — it's her.”
(l-r) Revathy, Vishal Jethwa, Kajol |
Kajol adds, “When I had seen her film Phir Milenge, I had absolutely loved it. I had decided that if she ever approaches me for a film — of course I don’t have the guts to say no to her… she would be the kind of director that I would love to work with. She has that ability to take a situation and to make it something extraordinary, in the most positive way possible. It’s a serious topic which scares us. But she took this topic and took the fear out of that. The film is about the celebration of life.”
Revathy |
Revathy, who is returning to direction after a gap of 18 years explains, “I had met Kajol to narrate it. She told me, ‘I am listening to this because it's you but I am not going to do this film’. I just smiled and told her, ‘That’s ok, just listen’. After the narration got over, Kajol told me, ‘I want to sing that song; that costume should be like…’ and I kept smiling. The mother and actor in her had accepted the film.”
Team Salaam Venky |
Speaking at the trailer launch about Aamir Khan doing a friendly appearance in the film, she reveals, “Aamir said he just wanted to read his scenes. I sent him those scenes. He read the scenes and said, ‘I am doing it’. It was just over the phone. Then we had a film narration. It’s written so well, and so beautifully by Sammeer (Arora) and Kausar (Munir). Aamir said, ‘Ek bhi shabd nahin badlunga, aise hi karunga' (I won’t change a single word, I’ll just do it the way it is).”
Vishal Jethwa and Kajol |
On a parting note, Vishal, who stunned the audience with his solid big screen debut in Mardaani 2, concludes, “I completed 12 years in the industry and Salaam Venky is very special to me. I have such a big poster and it is such an honour to stand with such a talented cast. I am so grateful and this is the happiest day of my life.”
Salaam Venky will hit screens on December 9 and also stars Rajeev Khandelwal, Rahul Bose, Aahana Kumra and Prakash Raj.
