KARAN JOHAR ON HIS THIRD FILM

Now that Karan Johar has almost completed work on his forthcoming movie, he finally speaks about Kabhi Alvidaa Na Kehna and its big star cast.

There is a lot of curiosity and excitement about your new film?
What for? I’m just an ordinary director making an ordinary film. I guess the curiosity comes from my making my first film since 2001 after Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. Kabhi Alvidaa Na Kehna too has a huge cast. So there will be a certain expectation. Films involving me and Shah Rukh are talked about. They’ve been very successful in the past. People’s expectations are scaring me. I’m not getting much sleep. But yes. I’ve tackled marriage, an institution I’m not familiar with. Now that I’m 33 and graying, I’ve stopped seeking the support of hair-dye. I was more than ready to take on a mature theme. I was quite tired of being counted among the new generation of filmmakers. I’m not young anymore. I’m ten years into the industry, and quite qualified to tackle a mature subject.

So you did no research?
None! Except emotional research. My cinema is always a result of personal observations. I don’t read, listen to current music or run to see every film in town. My education comes from past Hindi cinema and music. I observe strangers, or friends at parties. But let me tell you KANK isn’t about real people. It’s a complete piece of fiction. It comes from a space I don’t know, but understand. I created the characters for various reasons. I hope to God no one connects personally with the characters.

Most of the film is shot. Does it look as unconventional as people think?
I think people will connect as well with this film as they did with K3G and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. I don’t know what people expect from my new film! I’ve just made what came naturally to me at this point of time. I’ve always been a member of the audience even while making a film. KANK is a human drama. It’s about marriages and other man-woman relationships. Last time when I directed they said it was Yash Uncle’s Kabhi Kabhie. This time I’m supposed to be re-making Silsila. It’s also supposed to have elements of the film Closer. But it’s not! I admire Yash Chopra more than any filmmaker. That’s why I would never dare remake his films. Silsila is one of my favourite films. But all of us filmmakers are perfectly capable of doing original work. Don’t you think? We just need to apply ourselves.

So what's Alvidaa about?
I don’t want to say much. Anything I say can and will be held against me (laughs). With the combination of stars and the location I shot in and the title with the letter ‘K’, KANK can’t look very different. So let’s just wait for audiences to see the film and let them form their opinions. All I can say it’s a Hindi film like any other. I’ve just fine-tuned it differently.

Your audience stretches from grandmom to grandchild. Will they like what they see?
I sure hope so. The emotions in my film are liked universally. My film will be for every kind of audience. I definitely don’t intend to sectionalize my audience this time.

Your favorite actor, Shah Rukh is he presented differently?
Who am I to even try to present him differently? There has never been an actor like him. Personally for me he’s my God, my hero and brother. I don’t have to think about how he’ll play a character. He does all the thinking on his own. The character comes from my heart. And then Shah Rukh takes over. He needs no presentation. His presence is enough. He gives a sub-text, graph and everything that a character needs. He understands what I want from his performance. And he gives that extra bit by himself. I feel I fail Shah Rukh. When will I give him that one film where I’ll write a role that would do justice to him? In KANK he’s done everything on his own. I wrote a simple character. He gave it the right nuances and complexities.

And Abhishek?
You know to direct someone whose birthday party you’ve attended as a child, is an emotional experience. I’ve watched him grow up, go out of the country and go through a period of trial and error as an actor…I’ve seen his whole graph through his mother’s eyes. We all feel so proud of him. My mother adores him. Working with Abhishek is like working with someone I’ve known all my life. Those birthday parties I attended continue on the sets. For Abhishek shooting is a party. We just have to agree. He’s a super-brat. He’s a combination of man and child. I think I’ve captured that quality in KANK.

How was working with Amitji, again?
Just working with him is an honour. I’ve worked with Lataji (in K3G) and Amitji, the two legends. I’d say Amitji’s character is flamboyant; a very unusual character compared with what he has played so far. And he’s looking like a rock star. He’s cool in Alvidaa. And he’s very cool anyway.

What about your two girls?
Rani Mukherjee is someone I appreciate for various reasons. I love Rani as a person and a performer. Her Black is a landmark performance. I don’t think she can ever do it again which is so unfortunate. She stood by me when I was just starting out. And after Kuch Kuch Hota Hai she did a special appearance for me in K3G when she was going through a career -low. All these years she has been in touch with me nearly every day; without expecting anything in return. She’s like my kid sister. I feel that much more for her because her love for me is unconditional. That eclipses her other equally important ability as an actor. Her strengths as human being will always be more important to me. Today she’s a rock-solid professional. She did everything right to get her character in Alvidaa right.

What about her animosity with Preity?
Totally untrue! Problems happen when the navigator is weak. I don’t see myself as a weak captain of the ship. Rani and Preity share very little cinema space in my film. And they got along very well. And I mean that. There was no problem. Just because there were a whole lot of stars in New York it doesn’t mean there will be problems. Why can’t people understand that? There doesn’t have to be a fight if you put two actors and two actresses in the same room. This isn’t the stone age! Cat-fights between actresses is passe. Everyone works for the best interests of a film.

How was the NY stint?
Let me put it this way, it was the most difficult phase of my life. Those were the toughest three months ever. I thank my cast and crew for seeing me through them. The conditions and crises were tackled, thanks to my on-line producer and my CEO. It was traumatic. There were production problems, locations issues and a hurricane, plus everyone away from home.

Was it because your dad is no longer there to guide you?
Could be! But I believe he was with me all through. It was still like being stuck in a desert where I couldn’t even see a mirage. To shoot away from home, away from sets these aren’t easy. In a studio you’re a master of your space. But I still prefer shooting on location. That’s where real emotions come in. Yes, we did have fans on location. But we are what we are because of them. If their presence on location bothered us then we’ve no right to expect them to come to theatres to see our film.

What have those three months taught you?
Today I’m a better production person. I’ve grown older. More grey hairs.

Is there a delay because of Mr Bachchan's illness?
His health is the only thing that matters. Everything else is secondary. We make films about human emotions. And if we don’t keep those emotions obtainable in our real lives then we’re hypocrites. Amit Uncle’s health matters more than anything else. The film will be released sometime this year. Please watch my film. We’ve spent so much money; I think my friend and CEO Apoorva Mehta will land up in the ICU. We made lots of mistakes; there were lots of indulgences which we could’ve avoided. The film could’ve looked the same at a much lower cost.

Are you and Yashraj Films joining hands?
We’ve been together in every way for a long time. I’m still structuring my own production house. Yashraj distributes my films worldwide. To me Dharma and Yashraj are the one and the same.

Credit: This story was submitted by Ankit Jain of Footprints.in. They run their own movie Blog at DCECinemas. To submit your own articles for posting on radiosargam.com please email.