Sweet 60

Another first for Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment Pvt Ltd, is that you have started co-productions with different banners like Dharma etc.

Usually I don’t tie up, but I did for two films because I planned the films with Shah Rukh and Ranbir and then things were stalled. It was at this stage that Karan (Johar) came in. And Abhishek Verman, who directed 2 States, is the son of R Verman an old art director, so I thought it is all in the family, so let’s do it and get the project off the ground. And it worked wonders for us. But unless there is a marriage of creativity, I’m not joining hands with others.

Given the new crop of directors and actors (Imtiaz Ali, Kabir Khan, Arjun Kapoor) you are working with, your productions have a whole new look and feel to them.

There has been gradual change. One day, I decided to do Highway because Tamasha was taking time. Imtiaz had this story and he wanted to do something new. I would not have made it with somebody else. And now with Kabir I can take a chance because we have made one film with him and it is a different film. Even when Phantom releases, people will be shocked as it is a very, very brave story about terrorism etc. So it took me about eight to nine days to agree, inspite of Katrina and Saif being in the film.
Now when we are growing old and stepping into our fifties, it feels like the right time to take risks; to tell different stories. When you are in your 30s and 40s, you have a little fear—What will happen? Or, what if it doesn’t happen? Being cautious has served us well because we have sustained in the business. This is the 60th year of our company and I don’t think there are too many companies that have been around for this long.
I think we started in 1955. This year, for the first time I have given a break to rank newcomers and I am the first and only director from my family in three generations.

What convinced you about not just casting Tiger, but launching him as an actor?

It was the director Sabir Khan, actually. He was convinced about Tiger’s ability and then again, I have known Jackie (Shroff) for the longest. But it was Sabir’s conviction, and then Tiger is a good kid. Both Kriti (Sanon) and he matured as actors during the shooting of the film. Kriti got a little overshadowed with all the attention being focussed on Tiger, but she’s pretty good too.

Let’s talk about your launch as a director, what compelled you to finally take on the director’s mantle?

As luck would have it, there was nobody else to do the job. After Shirish (Kunder) walked out, I approached many directors. I went to Kabir (Khan) who said he was busy with some other script, so I approached other directors who were also busy with other projects. Since, we had to begin shooting within three months, Salman suggested that I direct it. I did not realise,that Kick in a matter of time, would notch up Rs.230 crore.
So, you see, whatever happens, good or bad, happens for the best. Although, at that particular time, you always feel bad about it and start cursing God for your predicament, as that’s the easiest thing to do. But eventually, you realise that had it not happened, then you would not have achieved your goal. God has his own screenplay. When you are 45 plus and are getting on in years, you feel the urge to do more things in life.
Sixty years have gone past— my grandfather and dad made some astounding films, but now seeing my son Suhaan’s interest, I feel the company will touch 100 years. He is fond of films. He has got his own camera, editing set etc, so I feel that the company’s future is safe.

You are a very involved producer, so how would you rate yourself as a director?

I had a back problem and was laid up throughout the film, and could not take physical stress. I was lucky Salman was very well behaved and reported on the sets by 2 o’clock in the afternoon (laughs). Salman and I would call up and co-ordinate with each other for shooting. I would tell him that only if he was ready, I would come on the set.
It was like going back to school days for me. I had a great team; they helped me a lot, but I was so stressed. I would just wait for 6’o clock, so that we could wrap up shooting for the day.
I would often wonder why I was doing it? I have had a great run in the last 25 years and I have given a break to so many new directors. I was petrified that everyone would criticise me if something went wrong. I was quite traumatised, so for the next five years, I will definitely not direct a film.
Salman told me, ‘we can make Kick 2 now.’ and I said, ‘forget about me directing for another five years. After five years, I will think whether I should make a film or not.’

Getting Nawazuddin Siddique in Kick was a fabulous idea, what made you think of casting him for the role?

I dedicate this selection to the people I have worked with— from J.P. Dutta to Imtiaz Ali. When I first got the script I told my team that I want to cast Randeep (Hooda) and Nawazuddin. People were shocked at the idea wondering if it would be possible for these actors to hold their own opposite Salman. I wanted a guy without muscles, very lean and small, but someone who could talk a lot and exude a certain nervous energy. Nawaz, who is a terrific actor, fit that bill. I was little worried about Randeep, as I had heard about him being temperamental. So we got both Salman and Randeep to interact even before the shoot began. Salman needs a very friendly work atmosphere. To him it is more about the quality of the human being. He likes good people around and eventually that energy works. I had a chat with him and he was very receptive, so it all worked out well.

Salman mentioned that you made everything bigger and better and no expense was spared.

I didn’t overshoot or go beyond the budget because, when you spend a lot then you have to compensate for it. My knowledge and experience as a producer helped me a lot.

What was it like to direct Salman who is your friend and has starred in films produced by you?

He’s a sweetheart. Nobody else could have been able to convince me to direct. We have known each other for the last 23-24 years and understand each other very well. He was fair and good to me, even when the media was against him. He is the only actor who has got the guts to take a chance like this. No other superstar can do it. That’s why he gets his due. He’s very happy for me, because now, I’m actually his protege and he feels very good about it.
God has been very kind. After months and years of narration, we completed the film in record time, before Eid. Now we are wiser—we know that to earn Rs.230 crore is very difficult. It is easier to reach the Rs.150 crore mark, but after that the rise is painfully slow.

Which film you would say has hit the mark, and which one exceeded your expectations?

All the films, but I think Highway should have done better as it was a good product. With 2 States, I was expecting that the film would earn Rs.75 -80 crore, but that it raked in Rs.110 crore, came as a shocker. The same was the case with Heropanti, which I thought would make around Rs.30 – 35 crore, but it crossed above Rs.55 crore, which was again quite shocking. For Kick, I thought if we made anything above Rs.180 -200 crore was good for me, but we earned Rs.220 crore. Luckily, there is a monetary benchmark to measure against. Earlier the benchmark was the number of years, months and weeks that a film screened in the theatres.

Why did you rope in the bestselling author Chetan Bhagat to write the screenplay for Kick?

I am not an avid reader. I read 10 pages of a book, and when I go back to it, I don’t remember anything. But when I started reading Chetan’s book, I found it very interesting as it was easy to understand. When I read 2 States, I went back to reading his earlier books and found them interesting, so I called him over and offered him this film to write. He was shocked. I just asked him to write the same story the way he would write a novel, which helped me shoot better.

So what’s coming up next?

In the next five years, I see all the top directors working for me. I also want all the top storytellers of the country to work for me. I want my company to come up with the best of content. It’s a difficult task because there are capable people around. Earlier, when I started in ’90s there were many producers who were not very professional. I had a clean run that time. Since 2000, the producers and directors who have come into the business are brilliant, hard working, focussed and well educated. We proved ourselves this year, but that’s not enough. We need to do even better in the years to come. There are five films for next year and then we have a few others in the pipeline for 2016 . We will soon be working with Hrithik (Roshan). These are just seeds being planted for the future.

Who is the one actor that is on your wish-list?

Aamir is the only one whom I have not worked with. Shah Rukh has done a special appearance in two of our films. I now realise that the most important thing is the content. Earlier, I spent three years on one film. That’s why I would not work with somebody who I did not like or get alongwith. Now we have five films in a year, so basically you end up working with everybody. If you deliver well, if the results are good, actors also feel secure about working with you.

You have travelled and shot in practically all the countries around the world, so which are the new destinations on your shooting map?

We went to Poland for Kick, Corsica for Tamasha and even for Rohit’s (Dhawan ) film we are trying to explore new parts of Netherland.
For Phantom we shot on the border of Syria amdist all the hungama that was happening, and we actually shot there. Kabir even shot for it in Beirut. There is an undeniable element of fear lurking in these places . When our plane landed, we saw tanks outside the airport so we asked our line producers whether it was a safe place. The sound of a blast often shakes the city. Sometimes we’d be in a restaurant when the echo of a blast would be heard and we would be anxious, but the waiter would calmly go about his job . (laughs)
For our next film with Tiger, we want to explore China at places where nobody has shot so far.

As an individual producer, do you find collaborations with studios a good idea?

It’s not necessary. Perhaps, it works better with distribution because there is no creativity in that, it’s pure business and therefore it can be handled better by them. We tried mastering it, but we could not. There were a lot of issues—finance and infrastructure being among a few, so I tried collaborating with a couple of studios. Indies (indipendent producers) are scared of corporates. It’s all over the world. Studios are all about numbers, but indies are never made up of numbers. To us it is more about friendships and relationships. For me, it’s important to work with someone I can relate to, so I worked with Eros because I am very close to Kishore (Lulla). With Disney India it was again a fond association—as kids we used to visit Disneyland with our parents. To join hands with Disney was a big deal for us. I don’t know if I would be able to manage with them if they were merely a faceless entity. It’s very difficult to handle people and vice versa. For instance, my films don’t have a budget. Whatever the film costs is our budget. But people should also be willing to take the film on that value. Both these studios respect that and the fact that we have also delivered great films for them. They treat us with kid gloves. The Housefull series totally belongs to Eros and the other four films that we did all belong to Disney UTV who dedicated the first six months of 2014 to Nadiadwala Grandson.