Dabangg is a buffet meal, there’s something for everyone: Director Abhinav Kashyap

It's past 4:30pm and I am welcomed by a sleepy Abhinav Kashyap into his spacious Andheri home. "I haven't slept for five nights in a row," he explains.

Kashyap, who is helming one of the year's biggest films, has been routinely disturbed by producer Arbaaz Khan, who, too, has probably been spending sleepless nights on account of Dabangg.

The final post-production work of the Salman Khan starrer, slated for release next Friday, is in full swing and the director and producer are busy preparing for the premiere.

In a wide-ranging interview, Kashyap speaks about Dabangg, Hindi cinema, and his relationship with filmmaker brother Anurag. Excerpts:

Tell us about your television career.
I started in 1995 with a show called Trikaal, where both I and [elder brother] Anurag were dialogue writers. Thereafter we did one more fiction show called Kabhi Kabhi. Then he wrote Satya and moved on with films, while I continued writing for TV till 1999.

In 1999, I got my first opportunity to direct. I made a show called Darr which aired on Star Plus. Then I shifted base to Delhi for a year, where I wrote and directed a show called Rajdhani. Then I did a lot of episodic writing for Star Bestsellers, Shh... Koi Hai.

In 2003 I moved base to Chennai where I became an assistant to Mani Ratnam on Yuva. I came back to Mumbai in 2004 and made a show called Siddhant and a lot more I cannot recall.

How did films happen? How come the switch?
It’s only an extension of TV. I wrote my first film in 1998 called Jung, which was with Sanjay Gupta with actors like Sanjay Dutt, Raveena Tandon, Shilpa Shetty and Jackie Shroff. That film did not turn out very well and most of us ended up leaving the film just before completion. There was a controversy and a lot of differences cropped up. I was very disheartened and wanted to direct my own film.

In 2003, when the first phase of crossover cinema was taking place and a lot of small films were being made, I signed a film with a company, but it didn’t take off. Cinema is a natural extension for any TV guy, so I kept trying, met people, some responded, some didn’t. I wrote dialogues for Manorama Six Feet Under and 13B.

In 2008, I met Arbaaz Khan for a role in a film I had written and he responded very quickly.

Was it incidental that Arbaaz offered to produce your film?
I took my script to the actor Arbaaz for a role. He liked the script so much that he asked me who’s producing it and about the main lead. He offered to produce it. I said, ‘Great! I came here looking for an actor and I got an actor and a producer.'

Once Arbaaz joined in, with all his experience and access to people, the film gathered momentum. Things just fell in place. I think Arbaaz has been a great partner in this joyride.

Was it given that once Arbaaz had come on board, he would rope in brother Salman Khan?
No, it was never the deal. After Arbaaz agreed to produce the film, a lot of doors opened. The main door was Salman Khan. Arbaaz said he wanted to make a big film, with big stars. I knew what he was hinting at and I liked what he was hinting at.

Arbaaz said, ‘Salman would also love the script. But it’s important to make him love a script ‘cause if he doesn’t he’ll say find another script. He’ll ensure I become a producer but maybe not with this script. It is better if he evaluates the project on an individual basis.'

So he suggested areas where Salman might not like the script and I reworked those parts in the script. I had to tone down the dark moments and abusive language in the script. The reworked script suited Salman’s taste in many ways, especially the dialoguebaazi. Once he said yes, all the doors opened.

How did you get the idea for Dabangg?
I got it from my friend Dilip Shukla, who wrote Ghayal, Damini, Mohra and some Rajkumar Santoshi-era films. He brought a script to me in which I liked the character, but the story was not in place. I wanted him to rework the script. Being a senior writer, he was busy with a lot of projects, so he asked me to take it forward. I bought it from him and gave it a proper structure. Over two years, I wrote about 12-13 drafts till everyone got convinced about every aspect of the script.

Who everyone?
Everyone is predominantly me, Salman, Arbaaz and Salim saab [Salman and Arbaaz’s father].

What about your other scripts? What inspires you to write?
I have written a lot of scripts. I’ll start pitching them once I’m through with Dabangg. Coming to influences and inspiration, I never analysed why something is more interesting than the other. It’s more internal, hard to put into words. You get inspired by things you see, or read about. I read a lot of scripts by a lot of writers, sometimes there’s a semblance of a good plot hidden somewhere, sometimes not. There is no scientific method or formula for inspiration.

It took you almost 15 years to direct your first feature film. Haven’t you taken too long to get here?
I’m in my 16^th year now. It’s been a nice, wonderful journey. Bombay has given me everything, from my wife here, to my job, my children, my house. It’s been slow and steady, but in the 16 years I have done a lot of things. Anurag had a far harder journey initially, but he got success quicker. He came in 1993 and was the top writer in 1997 with Satya. It took me time, but I fulfilled my other dreams. And now I have my opportunity.

How different is it directing for TV and films apart from the scale of the canvas?
The scale is the difference. The canvas is vast in a film. Logistical compulsions do not allow a lot of things in TV direction, while the canvas for films is unlimited. When I become James Cameron I can also afford to spend millions of dollars and do whatever I like.

Do you aspire to become James Cameron some day?
Not necessarily James Cameron, but yes, someone as big and successful.

Did you watch Inception? How long do you think Bollywood will take to make something like Inception?
Very long. At least 20-30 years. Any permanent change is very slow. What we are doing now, Hollywood must have done in the 1960s or so. We are 50 years behind them. The whole society needs to change.

A good chunk of computer graphics for Hollywood films gets done in India. It involves a huge amount of money and Indians don’t have the budget. Anurag’s No Smoking was trashed in India but best reviewers loved it. Maybe 20 years down the line our critics will say it was a good film.

Films borrow from life and life borrows from cinema. We cannot run ahead of time, we have to keep our viewers in mind. Till the last person in the country is able to go to school and improve his economic condition, our films will not strike a chord. It is evolutionary, so we will take time. It is very important for our filmmakers to be rooted here. In India, the masala genre comes handy where you package style, dialogue, comedy and action.

Being an English graduate, did writing seem the most logical thing to do?
I came to Bombay to prepare for my MBA exams. Writing just happened when a neighbour asked me to write dialogues for him. I learnt the technicalities and it just went on. Being from the North and having a literature background helped. And once you work in one medium there is always the desire to move to the next level. I always wanted to see my words being translated onto screen.

What kind of movies do you like?
I like all good movies. [Excitedly] Mazaa aana chahiye. I’m a very easy person, not an intellectual who likes to analyse everything. Some good films, I like to know how they are made, but mostly I watch films purely for entertainment and fun and my inclination is towards drama. I like all Italian directors of Hollywood. The Coppolas, the Scorseses, all the mafia and non-mafia drama film directors are my favourites.

One genre I don’t enjoy is horror. I get scared in theatres and I find it embarrassing to be scared. Even my 10-year-old daughter watches horror films and laughs at me. She finds them funny.

How was it working with Salman Khan the superstar?
It was very good and very different from all the other people I’ve worked with before. The different and difficult part is that when he is on the sets and he asks me a question, everybody looks. There is always a mob on the sets, 'cause people seem to love him everywhere he goes. He’s a very fun person, one of the easiest people to work with. He doesn’t like to be in a hurry. He comes on the sets and says I’m here to enjoy, don’t make it a punishment. Even though he was from the producer family, he said don’t worry about money or time. It was five or six hours of work each day, but it was fun.

Did the easy-going attitude affect the film’s schedule?
Yes. We were supposed to finish shooting in 80 days, we took 133. I’m sorry to Arbaaz I spent a lot of his money. But he himself was there and partying with us. Being a first-timer, I had it very easy. Arbaaz’s support was phenomenal. Sohail Khan was with us behind the scenes. He put his production machinery behind us. Never felt like I was a first-time director.

How was it working with Sonakshi Sinha?
Wonderful! Have you met her? Very young, charming, beautiful, confident. Salman had expressed a desire for a fresh pairing, while Arbaaz wanted a big name. Then I met Sonakshi at Salman’s place for a function. We hit it off from the very start. Her acting is very good. We organised a voice-training class for her, a lot of workshops, script-reading sessions, mock drills, etc. She almost had the film by heart before we went on floor.

Did she have the airs of a star kid? How did the lineage help her and you?
No. She was very professional. More than a star kid, she was like my assistant director, running errands for me. Her lineage was a bonus that helped us package the film. We have encashed the curiosity there is when a star kid is launched.

How is your relationship with Anurag? Does he give you advice?
Yes, he does. Solicited or unsolicited. He’s a typical elder brother who tells me a lot of things. I take what I need and leave the rest. He ends up screaming at me, but it doesn’t matter.

How different are the two of you as regards your cinematic takes?
I think that is for the audience to tell. After Dabangg there will be comparisons. People need a reference point for everything. He has been compared to many others, and I’m sure I will be, too. But it doesn’t bother me. We both enjoy watching films. He has selected a lot of serious topics for his films, doesn’t mean he’s a boring person. He’s a fun guy, who enjoys fun cinema. He enjoys Govinda and if he says he doesn’t he’s lying.

He was the one who rented VHS tapes of Dharmendra movies. We loved the action, impossible things but we believed it ’cause Dharmendra, the original He-Man, was doing it. We watched a lot of pulp cinema all through our childhood. Coming from a small town [Benaras], we had only access to what you call in film lingo B-centre and C-centre films.

But Anurag read a lot of pulp film magazines like Mayapuri. Later, we saw films of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. We grew up like normal children, had a fun childhood. Being independent was something our parents instilled in us. Then Anurag got involved in theatre in Delhi, which brought him to Bombay. I followed and so far I’m happy, I have no regrets.

Anurag is associated with serious films. Do you plan to work together considering the different topics you both have chosen for your films?
I think Anurag hasn’t had an opportunity to do something not so serious. Eventually he will. He was very headstrong right from the start. He is brilliant at what he does. He has written a lot of non-serious cinema, for money or for creative satisfaction.

His start was not that great. Paanch got stuck and the censor board gave him an inane reason that the film did not deserve to be seen. The censor board banned the film because of the violence and took away one and a half years from his life due to legal hassles.

Anurag was very disturbed after the whole episode. His initial struggle continued with Black Friday in 2004 and Gulaal in 2009. He had a string of bad luck. With Dev.D he pushed the boundaries by 'contemporarising' the plot. He wove real events into the characters. Likewise I’m trying to find my own niche in my own way. Constant comparisons make it difficult, but it comes with the job, I accept it.

When can we expect the two of you to work together?
Both of us do the same job, writing and direction. We will work together very soon but we won’t write and direct together. We understand each other well and we need our freedom while working. So if he writes I’ll direct and vice versa. If I have Anurag as a producer I will have all the freedom. [Chuckles] He even said he’s happy I’m going to make so much money so now he expects me to produce all his small films now. He’s in Venice for his film That Girl In Yellow Boots which is being showcased at a film festival there. My film releases on his birthday, but he won’t be here. He will be missed.

What plans after Dabangg?
Many more films will come. As of now there is only talk, nothing concrete. Right now I’m only reaping the rewards of all the hard work I put into Dabangg. I am loving the attention I’m getting.

Are you flattered by the response the trailers of Dabangg have got?
Yes, very much. I’m very happy and thrilled that people have liked the first look.

Have your expectations gone up?
I always knew my film would do well. Now I think it will do blockbuster business.

Any message for the audience?
I hope they like the film and that it shows in the numbers. Everyone is now watching the box office. I have two clear weeks, including two public holidays, to make a mark. I have a top star, Salman Khan, with his top release date of September 10, which is Eid. It couldn’t get better than this.