At a time when romcoms are the flavor, isn’t making a dark love story risky?
The film Issaq is essentially a love story. The darkness is only incidental. Though it ends tragically, the love story is very beautiful. In fact, it’s the direct contrast with the goody-goody love stories that will attract.
You seem to be attracted to the dark?
As a filmmaker, drama-wise it is always more interesting to handle and explore these layers of human emotions than just try the obvious. The opposition heightens the drama, so more than the dark it’s these layers that attract me.
What made you decide on the cast – Prateik and newcomer Amyra?
The film required a very young couple and I needed actors who could translate the restlessness of the characters on screen. Both Prateik, who was cast first, and Amyra fit the parts perfectly.
Though the two belong to a completely different background – you know having lived in an urban set up – the personal journeys they traversed to fit the parts of a small town couple was very challenging and interesting for me as a director. It’s difficult to imagine them in that space and so that is the best part too of how easily they have moulded into something they are not.
What’s been the toughest part of making the film?
The toughest part is to get the right producers to back you and your convictions as a filmmaker. Otherwise putting together the film, that’s the part I love the most (smiles). That’s the real pleasure.
You have shot a Ramleela footage in Benaras...
Yes, even BBC was not given permission to shoot it. But it was important for me to draw the parallels between Ram’s journey and the journey that Prateik’s character makes. That made it vital that I capture the Ramleela and knowing the Maharaja of Benaras Anantnarayan Singh helped, as he is my uncle.
What next?
I had put my gangster story Mohabbat Miyaan on the backburner to go for this more commercially viable film, but after this I will get back to working on that film.
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