Deception Point

The lopsided smile that precedes his explanation hints at his sense of humour. “I’ve written 20 scripts since 2004. But Karthik Calling Karthik is the first one that is being made into a film. It took six years of attempt to kickstart a career as a writer in the film industry. I spent the first five years trying to moonlight as a writer along with a steady job in advertising. In 2008,I quit my job to pursue my dream steadfastly. Now,this thriller will decide my fate as a writer,” he shrugs.

The young filmmaker’s struggle may not be unique. But his story takes on an interesting hue as he recounts how he suffered fools before finally forging a deal with Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani’s Excel Entertainment. “I dedicated the last year to meeting all kinds of people from the industry,even the typical old-school agents who make tall claims. Once someone handed me a DVD of a Hollywood film and asked me to write a script. When I told him that it already is a film,I was told I need to translate it for a Hindi feature film. I had to rather unabashedly turn him down by telling him that he needs a translator and not a writer for that job,” he says.

Lalwani’s encounter with Excel Entertainment helped dismiss the notion that the film industry doesn’t value content. A common friend set up a meeting for him with both Akhtar and Sidhwani. Lalwani went there to ask for advice,but the producer duo encouraged him to finish his script and come back to them. “They loved the script and decided to co-produce it with Magic Beans,the production house I own along with my partner Amit Chandra,” he narrates.

That his producer is also his lead actor doesn’t make the debutant nervous. Lalwani admits that he was scouting for a hero when Excel stepped in. The writer-director realised that Akhtar has previously been a part of films with ensemble casts and hence comes without any baggage of being associated with a genre. So Karthik gave him the opportunity to cast the multi-talented filmmaker as a strong central character along with Deepika Padukone.

With the long struggle that preceded the actual making of the film,it isn’t surprising that Lalwani considers the filmmaking process a cakewalk. “I have a background in commercial art so I was throughout very particular about the art in terms of colours and lighting. And though I had an experienced director like Farhan as my lead,I was allowed the freedom to do things my way.” It is Padukone’s spontaneity that was a revelation,he admits. “I offered her the role because she has the freshest face for this kind of a role,but her hunger to perform made her brilliant,” he nods.

However,by debuting with a thriller,Lalwani is taking a risk. “It’s a rather unexplored genre in India. But personally,thrillers excite me tremendously,particularly when a filmmaker can manage to surprise me at the end. The trick is to stay one step ahead of your audience. Look at the reactions the promos of Karthik… have received so far. Many people think it’s a straightforward plot with a double role but I could be misleading them with the title,” he mischievously grins.