Onkar Kulkarni (BOMBAY TIMES; February 21, 2020)

Over the past 13 years since he entered Bollywood, Aanand L Rai has donned both hats with elan — that of a prolific producer and a fine director. And now, he is excited about his latest release, Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan, which he has co-produced with Bhushan Kumar. The film, starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Jitendra Kumar as the lead romantic pair, deals with the subject of homosexuality in a light-hearted manner. As the movie hits theatres today, Rai talks to BT about being in love with his films, the emotional support he seeks from his actors, and how a serious subject like that of Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan, needs to be told through a heavy dose of humour. Excerpts...

What encouraged you to come up with a homosexual love story at this point? Did the scrapping of Section 377 (by the Supreme Court in September 2018) encourage you? Or, is the fact that in recent years, films like Aligarh (2015), which dealt with the subject in a serious manner, received a good response from the audience?
When we started working on this subject, Section 377 had not been scrapped. The verdict came during the course of the film and we had to tweak our climax because of it. The reason I decided to make Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan is different.

As a filmmaker, I felt the need to understand their world. There was a time when I wasn’t able to understand the universe of Tanu Weds Manu (2011) and Raanjhanaa (2013). Jaise hi mujhe iss topic pe kuch samajh aaya, I thought of sharing it with the audience. As a team, we really wanted to work on this subject, especially when Hitesh Kewalya (writer-director) came up with a good script. It all started with Shubh Mangal Saavdhan (2017), when we presented a subject like erectile dysfunction to the family audience. The idea of the franchise is to bring all the topics that are discussed behind closed doors into people’s drawing rooms. It is all about how you make them family entertainers. Ayushmann knew that we were working on this subject, and he got sold on the idea the moment he heard the script.

This movie depicts the romance between two men. So, was it tough getting the lead pair’s (Ayushmann and Jitendra) onscreen chemistry right?
The film is not about the romance between two men, it is about the society accepting two men involved in a romantic relationship. Hum logon ko lagta hai ki yeh unki problem hai, par actually problem hamari hai. It is our problem that we don’t understand a human relationship like this. So, the only way to reach out to the audience, with a heavy subject like this, is through a good dose of humour.

Like most of your previous movies, this film, too, is set in a small town. What is it that attracts you to this milieu?
I would say that my films are set in middle-class settings, not small towns. I understand that world much better. That’s the way I have been brought up and it reflects in my movies. Today, I might be a filmmaker, living in a bigger home, driving a bigger car, but I will always remember my upbringing. I was born and brought up in Delhi, in a middle-class family. My mom was a fine arts teacher in a government school. I remember growing up in a government colony. So, be it Lucknow, Kanpur or Haridwar, the backdrop of my film will always be middle class.

As a producer, this is your second film with Ayushmann (after Shubh Mangal Saavdhan). Have you ever thought about directing him?
It is not easy to get a script for an actor who you understand so well. I am just waiting for the right script to direct him. My process is different — I first fall in love with the story and then decide upon the actor. However, we have discussed the idea of working together as a director-actor. He is looking forward to a pure romance or a pure action film. I told him action toh nahi, magar pure romance pe kuch soch sakte hai.

Your last directorial Zero (2018), starring Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma didn’t perform as expected at the box office. Given that there are a lot of expectations attached to each film, how did you deal with it?
Like I said, I am a director who falls in love with his stories and that encourages me to make a film. I think I was in awe of Zero, I was madly in love with it. I think I overdid it. Bolte hai na, zyada pyaar bachche ko bigaad deta hai. I think this is what happened with Zero, but the experience taught me a lot. As far as my association with Khan saab (SRK) is concerned, I will relish it all through my life. I got a partner in him, so it was never a star I worked with. He was an emotional partner, who gave me a lot of support. I am not a craftsman, so I need emotional support every time I make a film. When I was working with Khan saab, he never made me feel like it was such a huge film. He made me believe in my story, and made me go through the journey the way I wanted to. However, like it happens after the release of every film of mine, I went silent post the release of Zero, too. That is all. Our association was not affected by the film’s box-office performance. I think silence is the best way to take both, success or failure. Just go quiet. Absorb. Learn. Understand.

You said that you learnt a lot from Zero. How is that experience helping you with your next directorial, Atrangi Re, featuring Akshay Kumar, Dhanush and Sara Ali Khan?
I won’t be careless. In fact, I have never been careless in my life. I was always a good student, and will remain a good student throughout my life. No experience has disturbed me as such, it has only made me understand a few things. So, I am looking at playing my innings the same way, I have been playing since the last 10-15 years. I can’t change myself. I am fearless. Once again, I am in love with my film and my story and I am enjoying it. I want to be fearless as a person, and as a filmmaker.