Dramatic Debut

Dabangg,which releases on September 10,has been in the news for Salman Khan’s lean and moustachioed look,Sonakshi Sinha’s debut as well as Vinod Khanna and Dimple Kapadia’s pairing after a long gap. However,making the film has been anything but a cakewalk for Abhinav. It took almost a decade for him to find his footing in the industry. “I was a drifter in college. I wasn’t sure about what I wanted,” says he,reminiscing the days at Delhi University where he majored in English. Around that time he regularly wrote letters to Anurag who was already in Mumbai. “Anurag loved the way I wrote them,and encouraged me to take up writing as a profession,” says the 35-year-old. In mid-90s,he came to Mumbai following in his brother’s footsteps.

In 1995,Abhinav wrote his first film Jung,directed by Sanjay Gupta. “It bombed at the box-office and the experience made me bitter,” states the debutant director. He then moved to television. He began his telly career with Darr,which had Irrfan Khan and Kay Kay Menon in the lead. It was followed by a serial called Rajdhani.

The big break came when Abhinav was asked to assist Mani Ratnam on Yuva. “This was followed by my television series Siddhanth on Star One,which even got me an Emmy nomination,” states Abhinav,who simultaneously wrote dialogues for films like Manorama Six Feet Under and 13B. However,all along,he dreamt of directing a film. With eight scripts under his belt,he started pitching them to different producers. “Beggars cannot be choosers. I was willing to work on any of the scripts that they chose. As destiny had it Dabangg was the first to be chosen,” he says. In fact,he had gone to meet Arbaaz Khan for a role in the film. But Abhinav also ended up finding a producer in Arbaaz.

It was also Arbaaz’s idea to cast a big star in the lead role. “When I told him I had no access to big stars,Arbaaz told me he would manage that,if I let him produce the film,” recalls Abhinav. And when Salman agreed to the role after the first narration,Abhinav had hit the bull’s eye. “I was so awestruck. I couldn’t believe I was working with actors like Salman and Vinodji,who I had grown up watching,” he says.

Although Dabangg may be a character-driven family drama,Abhinav doesn’t refute the influence of Anurag on his style of filmmaking. “The style is similar,but it is the kind of subjects we choose that’s very different,” says Abhinav,who believes that Anurag had his set of frustrations with the industry and hence chose dark subjects. While Anurag waged a war against the system,Abhinav was a silent bystander. “I didn’t want to go through all this. I love watching his kind of cinema but it is very difficult to make it in this country. And I am glad he has succeeded,” he says. With Dabangg,Abhinav too is courting success on big screen. “If my film does well,it will open many doors. If it doesn’t,I will have a tough time making a second one.”

Director’s take
Salman Khan: Exhilarating but difficult,because he demanded an explanation on everything that I wanted him to do. That took a lot of my energy.

Arbaaz Khan: A fantastic friend. Our 80 days schedule was extended to 130 days but he did not complain.

Sonakshi.Sinha: Wonderful student of the game. Does her work obediently. Her mother was around most of the time and cooked lovely meals for the unit.

Vinod Khanna: Easygoing,a director’s actor.

Dimple Kapadia: A thorough professional and a charming personality.