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Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat was commissioned by Abhishek Bachchan, then he backed out; earned 4x profit: Milap Zaveri
As per Milap Zaveri, Abhishek Bachchan 'loved' the script of Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat when he heard it 10 years ago but refused to be a part of it a decade later.
Abhishek Bachchan backed out of Ek Deewane Ke Deewaniyat.
Harshvardhan Rane made his big comeback in the movies when his film Sanam Teri Kasam re-released in the theatres last year and proved to be a massive hit at the box office. As soon as Sanam Teri Kasam made it big, director Milap Zaveri decided to capitalise on Harshvardhan’s fame and make his next film Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat with the actor. The film clashed against Dinesh Vijan’s Thamma on Diwali and managed to make around Rs 79 crore at the domestic box office, as per trade tracker Sacnilk. In a new interview, Milap shared that the film’s collection was at least 3-4 times more than what they invested in the film, which presumably makes it a bigger hit than Thamma, which made Rs 134 crore at the domestic box office. Thamma starred Ayushmann Khurrana and Rashmika Mandanna and was the next chapter in Vijan’s horror universe.
‘Abhishek Bachchan said yes to Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat’
In a chat with Vishal Malhotra on his YouTube channel, Milap shared that he had the script of Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat with him for at least 10 years, and back then, he had approached Abhishek Bachchan for the film, who had agreed to be a part of it. “I must give credit to Abhishek Bachchan who heard the story and loved it. He commissioned it and he said, ‘I want to do this film’. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out then,” he said and added that Nishikant Kamat was supposed to direct the film back then. Nishikant, known for directing Drishyam and Force, passed away in 2020.
The film’s credits thanked Abhishek Bachchan, but the actor has not spoken about his involvement with the film yet.
Milap said that after the failure of Satyameva Jayate 2 in 2021, he reached out to Abhishek again but this time around, the actor felt that the “time for me to do this story has passed.” Milap then approached 10 other actors who refused the film. He recalled that one of the actors he approached believed that he was “too good looking for the role” and felt, “How can the girl say no to me?” Another actor told Milap that he “did not identify with the toxicity of the character”. Another actor perceived it as a “villain’s role” and refused to take it up. Milap believes that actors might have said no because he was not in a good space in his career after the failure of Satyameva Jayate 2.
Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat made 3-4 times of its budget
Milap said that after the re-release of Sanam Teri Kasam, he texted Harshavrdhan who immediately jumped on board. While talking about the returns of the film, Milap refused to give exact numbers but mentioned, “A product worth Rs 3-4 made Rs 12” thus implying that the film made at least 3-4 times on the investment.
Milap also spoke about the resurgence in his career that he experienced with Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat and said, “Someone told me, ‘You are a cockroach. You refuse to die’.”
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Milap has written films like Masti, Pyare Mohan, Kyun Ho Gaya Na. He made his directorial debut with 2010’s Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai and has since directed films like Mastizaade, Satyamev Jayate and Marjaavaan. He also directed Mastiii 4.
About Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat
Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat, starring Harshvrdhan Rane and Sonam Bajwa, released on Diwali, clashing against Thamma, with almost no publicity and gained traction after the initial few days. The film followed Rane’s character, who is a local politician, as he starts stalking Bajwa’s character, who is an actress. The film was panned for its misogynistic tone.
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