The Kaamyaab director on finding his niche and voice, and gaining acceptance in the Hindi film industry
Kunal Guha (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 22, 2020)

His directorial debut Kaamyaab was widely appreciated by critics, but Hardik Mehta, who’s presently adding final touches to his next, an untitled horror comedy starring Rajkummar Rao and Jhanvi Kapoor, says “life hasn’t changed much since”.

Born in Rajkot and raised in Baroda, Mehta first made it to the entertainment pages in 2016 when his documentary Amdavad Ma Famous won the National Award for Best Non-Feature Film. Set against the backdrop of the biggest kite flying festival in India, the film follows an 11-year-old boy who chases kites. The docu was screened at many international film festivals. When we quiz him on his earliest introduction to the medium, Mehta points to his formative years when he sat through whatever played on TV at home — from family dramas to pot-boilers. “My father was a huge fan of Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chatterjee, so I grew up watching all their films,” says the B-Tech in Dairy Technology from Anand.

A regular at theatre festivals during college, it took Mehta two years in a job with a dairy outfit in Surat to realise that he wasn’t “meant to be in the technical field”. He turned copywriter with a Baroda-based agency and decided to part with half his salary of Rs 6,000 to watch a new film every day. “I was a regular at this DVD library in Baroda, which had a surprisingly massive collection of world cinema,” says Mehta.

His passion for films further crystallised when he got through Jamia Millia Islamia for a post-graduation degree in film production. Mehta’s final year project impressed filmmaker Dev Benegal so much that he roped him in as a script continuity supervisor for Road, Movie, his 2010 film starring Abhay Deol. He later bagged a similar role with filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane, whom he assisted on Lootera (2013), worked as the production assistant on Queen (2014) and co-wrote the screenplay for Trapped (2017).

Mehta had written the first draft of Kaamyaab, which revolves around a veteran supporting actor returning to films for his 500th turn, back in 2014 — coincidentally around the time when Alejandro Iñárritu’s Birdman released. “The thematics of the films were very similar,” he says. “But Vikramaditya [Motwane] assured me that my story was more culturally appropriate for Indian cinema.”

The writer-director, who hopes to adopt the cinematic sensibilities of German filmmaker Werner Herzog and considers A Guide for the Perplexed: Conversations with Paul Cronin to be his bible, was certain about translating his story on the big screen. But many, including those he had worked with, felt he had to prove himself before helming a project. “That’s when I stumbled upon this boy in Ahmedabad who risked his life and limb to nab kites and felt it could turn into an interesting observation on film,” he says, alluding to his self-funded documentary which met wide acclaim at festivals. Looking back, he feels it “lacks finesse” and is visibly “a first-timer’s job”, but “that’s what makes it unique”.

Mehta also directed a short film called The Affair, inspired by couples who make out along the shores of Mumbai because they can’t afford privacy at home. Manish Mundra’s Drishyam Films included it in their catalogue, and even agreed to back Mehta’s feature proposal, Kaamyaab, with Sanjay Mishra in the lead role.

Today, Mehta is humbled by the critical response to his debut and feels that the only way to gain acceptance in an industry known to be singularly insular, is by “upping one’s game”. “If you have to learn swimming, you have to jump into the pool. If you have to be a writer, you have to stare at a blank page,” he says.

Despite the acclaim, however, Kaamyaab had a modest release over only 250 screens, thanks perhaps to the release of a massive action-thriller in the same week. But Mehta is certain that his film wouldn’t have made it to the screens at all if it hadn’t been backed by Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment. “It’s ironic that we needed a superstar to promote a film about character actors too, but that’s the world we live in,” he says.

Amitabh Bachchan, who was honoured with Sayaji Ratna Award recently, shared some interesting anecdotes from his life
Soumitra Das (BOMBAY TIMES; November 25, 2018)

It was a whirlwind trip alright, but it takes a megastar only a few seconds to conquer his audience. And things were no different when Amitabh Bachchan visited Vadodara on Tuesday afternoon, after a long gap of 32 years. The veteran actor was honoured with Sayaji Ratna Award, which was presented to him by the BMA (Baroda Management Association).

There, he recited a few lines from the famous poem Agneepath, which was penned by his father, poet Harivanshrai Bachchan, much to the delight of the gathering. “I don’t have words to express my gratitude for receiving this award,” he said, adding, “I feel really overwhelmed and on this day, I am reminded of all those people who have inspired me and played a big role in my life, especially my parents.” Excerpts from the speech...

LEARNT A LOT FROM BABUJI
Just spending time with babuji, reading his poems and watching him at work taught me some invaluable lessons. No matter what you do in life, you can’t really move ahead without the blessings of your parents. Today, when I read about stories of aged parents being abandoned by their children or being neglected and sent to old age homes, I feel really pained. I would urge this generation to take utmost care of their parents because whatever we achieve in life is because of their blessings.

EARNING MONEY IS NO EASY TASK
I distinctly remember how babuji would travel to neighbouring cities and take part in kavi sammelans. There were times when he would return at 3 am, and I would open the door.

I would ask him, “Babuji, aap kya karte hai, itni der tak kaam karte hai? Ye sahi nahi hai!” He would smile and say, “Beta, paisa badi mushkil se milta hai!” Later, I joined the film industry and in those days, we would work on three films at a time. So, the first shift would be from 7 am to 2 pm, followed by 2 pm to 10 pm and 10 pm to 6 am shifts! So, occasionally, I would go home around 5 am and my father would open the door.

This time, it was his turn to ask, “Beta, kya karte ho? Kitna jyaada kaam karte ho?” And I had to admit, “Babuji, paisa badi mushkil se milta hai!” 

Aayush Sharma’s debut film is set to be shot in Gujarat with Navratri as the backdrop
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 15, 2017)

When Salman Khan was filming his 2016 wrestling drama Sultan, brother-in-law Aayush Sharma was a frequent visitor on the sets of the Ali Abbas Zafar directorial. Around the time, Ali’s chief assistant director, Abhiraj Minawala, came across a “simple, honest yet strong story” by Niren Bhatt who is a prominent writer in the Gujarati film and theatre industry. Abhiraj started working with the Baroda-born writer on the screenplay and dialogue of what would be his debut directorial. “Having interacted with Aayush on set, I thought he perfectly fit the part of a Gujarati boy who falls in love while dancing the garba during Navratri. I asked Salman sir if we could test him and he immediately agreed,” recalls Abhiraj, who by the end of the reading had found his hero and a nod from Salman Khan.

Titled Loveratri, the romance will be produced by Salman Khan and kicks off in Baroda and Ahmedabad in February 2018. Abhiraj plans to recreate the annual garba gatherings in Gujarat that bring together lakhs of revellers through nine nights of festivity. “Logistically, it is not possible to shoot during Navratri but we hope to whip up the same magic. Right now we are on a final technical recce. Aayush is undergoing language training as we don’t want him to get the dialect or accent wrong. He’s also taking dance classes as he needs to master garba. We will kick off only when he has perfected his moves,” says Abhiraj who has also assisted the late filmmaker Yash Chopra and Kabir Khan in the past.

The fifth SKF production not only doubles up as a launch for Aayush and Abhiraj but will also introduce a new leading lady who has an equal and prominent part. “There is a certain charm only a debutante can bring to the screen and we are scouting for a fresh face,” he informs.

Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; November 5, 2014)

Gaurav Dubey (MID-DAY; August 21, 2014)

Bollywood singer Rahul Vaidya seems to be the latest victim of cyber crime. If the latest buzz is to be believed, a guy claiming to be Rahul Vaidya on Facebook has gone on to dupe a Baroda-based women.

Says a source, “This conman created a fake Facebook profile claiming to be Rahul Vaidya and recently, he took Rs 20,000 from a Baroda-based woman under the pretext of featuring her in his next music video.”

The source adds that for quite some time now, this person has been chatting with scores of fans under Rahul’s guise. “His name is Raj Thakur and Rahul has already warned him a lot of times. This time, things have gone too far as Thakur has taken money from someone,” says a source close to Rahul.

When contacted, Rahul confirmed the news. He said, “Yes, I have come across a lot of imposters on social media and I got to know about this guy after a few of my friends pointed him out to me. His name is Raj Thakur and he has been flirting with fans using my name. Now he is seeking personal favours from my fans only so that I face the brunt. I have warned him in the past as well, but what he has done this time is plain shocking. After taking Rs 20,000 in return for featuring her in a video, he’s on the run and the lady can’t trace him. I now plan to take legal action against him and will soon lodge a police complaint.”