I get upset when my films don’t do well: Nagesh Kukunoor

Often called a ‘serious’ filmmaker, director Nagesh Kukunoor has written his own rules in Bollywood. From casting unconventional actors for his movies to narrating stories in a ‘non-commercial’ manner, he’s proved to be one-of-a-kind in the industry.

The director, who is back in the limelight for his upcoming release Mod, says that, like his previous films, this too has been shot in an unusual manner.

“Mod is inspired from a 2007-Taiwanese film, Keeping Watch. I saw the movie in a film festival and was completely floored by the way in which it was shot. It is a love story, but not the ones you see often in Bollywood. It is a kind of love story that I would want to tell... the characters are mismatched and the journey of love is also very intense. The film has an element of mystery that will keep the audience glued to the screens,” begins Nagesh.

It was not long ago when the director said that romantic stories were not his priority. But before we could probe on that, he says, “I have said earlier that I wouldn’t do love stories, but there can’t be any absolutes in life. In this industry, ‘never say never’ is the mantra... so here I am — with my new film. All my films have talked about ‘relationships’ and I believe that it’s the key to any genre of cinema. But this time around, I have experimented with an out-and-out romantic subject. However, I promise that it won’t be stereotypical!”

The film has Rannvijay Singh and Ayesha Takia in the lead. Nagesh, known to have a rather different taste when it comes to casting, believed that Rannvijay would be able to play the part well.

“Vijay carries the image of an action guy, thanks to the kind of shows he handles on television. But in cinema, he has no image as such. Moreover, I am used to recruiting unconventional heroes for films — like John Abraham in Aashayein or Juhi Chawla in 3 Deewarein — so casting him was not an issue. We had an audition and he was the best of the lot,” said Nagesh.

With his films receiving mixed reviews most of the time, does it affect him too much? “It’s all part of the process. No director in this industry can have a 100% successful track record! Of course I get upset if my movies don’t do well, but I forget about it by concentrating on my next film. That’s the key to get over it,” chuckles Nagesh.