Aamir Khan says decision to back Laapataa Ladies was born out of realisation that he’s in the ‘last’ phase of his career: ‘I can actively work only till…’

“I was telling sir (CJI) that during COVID, when I was 56, I thought this is the last leg of my career, I will work for 15 years more. I can actively work till 70 and who knows after that. Whatever I have learnt… I wanted to give back because the industry, the society, the country has given me so much. I thought maybe I can do one film a year, but as a producer I can back multiple stories I feel strongly about.”

The superstar, known for backing and starring in socially relevant films, said as a producer he wants to enable new filmmaking voices and Laapataa Ladies is a step in that direction.

“Through this, I will be able to give a platform to new writers, directors and everyone. Laapataa Ladies is the first step towards that, in a sense. I want to promote this kind of talent. I am hoping to produce four-five films a year, so that we get to see more such movies. That’s the effort,” he added.

During the event, CJI DY Chandrachud also asked Kiran Rao about the driving force for her to envision the film, to which the director replied that it was an original script by Biplab Goswami that Aamir had read as part of the Screen Writers Association’s writing competition. They bought the rights in 2020 and infused more humour to the dramatic narrative.

“The film has had a long journey. We weren’t sure, because the cinema industry and business had changed so much. A lot of people had advised Aamir to go straight to OTT, this is not the kind of film to release in cinemas because it has no stars or glamour. But the audience has given it a lot of love. I am so glad we went to the cinemas,” she added.

Laapataa Ladies chronicled the story of two young newlywed brides, who get exchanged during a train ride to their husband’s homes. The film was a decent grosser at the box office and was a bigger success story on Netflix, where it broke several viewership records.