After producing Blurr with Taapsee Pannu, Vishal Rana has swiftly moved on to new projects. One of them has caught our attention, and with good reason — the producer has picked up the adaptation rights of the Hollywood action thriller franchise, The Transporter. While Jason Statham led three films in the franchise, Ed Skrein stepped into the role in the fourth and final instalment. 

So, how will the story of a mercenary-driver play out in India? Rana reveals that the team is currently writing the script, keeping Indian sensibilities in mind. “The Transporter is the favourite action film [franchise] of many in India. We are trying to take the franchise forward here, by keeping the film’s [core intact], while designing a different script altogether. We will have an international action team on board, as we want to retain the [grand] scale of the original. We are currently finalising a director who can do justice to the subject,” says Rana, who is backing the project with EuropaCorp.

Stepping into Statham’s shoes is no mean feat. While Bollywood has its fair share of action heroes, the producer has a few names in mind for the role. “Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff and Kartik Aaryan are on my wish-list to play the lead role, as they are great in action. After the script and director are finalized, we will start approaching actors.”

Abhilash Thapliyal has been getting great feedback for his recent releases, Blurr and Faadu. However, the actor says he’s not taking anything for granted or becoming too “comfortable” with the success and praise. He says his race for auditions and attempts at cracking them continues.

“With all the great feedback coming my way, I’m still giving auditions in Bandra (Mumbai). And I have no problems with that,” shares Thapliyal, who made his movie debut with Dil Juunglee (2018).

The Aspirants actor adds, “It’s not like I don’t want to audition and want scripts to come directly to me. If that happens, I’ll be happy. But if I’m asked to audition, I’m happy with that. This (finding work on merit) has been a reality of our lives, be it from the time I was in radio to now in showbiz. We had to go, meet people and give auditions. My conscience is also clear this way ke jo hain apne dum pe hain. Haq se bol sakte hain ke we have got this work on our own merit, hardwork and talent.”

The actor is glad that he has made it this far without a godfather. In fact, he was delighted to land the role in Blurr after an audition despite his friend, actor Taapsee Pannu backing the project: “Taapsee was clear from the beginning that the audition process was a must. And that dosti ke basis pe kaam nahi milega. That feeling was mutual.”

While the Pannu and Gulshan Devaiah-starrer saw Thapliyal as the psychopathic antagonist, in Faadu, he portrays an alcoholic. Now, he is hoping to explore his range: “Due to my recent works, audiences have started to look at me beyond [stereotypical] boxes of being a hero’s friend, a comedian, etc. I hope I’ll get some good parts.”

Taapsee Pannu is in a “happy, comfortable space”, having finally debuted as a producer with her latest OTT release Blurr. However, the actor admits it wasn’t easy balancing the “dual task” of playing the lead part and being the producer. In a candid chat, Pannu opens up about plans to not do thrillers for sometime now, the typecasting culture in Bollywood and why she wants to return to the big screen soon. Excerpts:

I felt that this is a controlled film, in terms of locations and number of people, so it’ll be nice to step into and test my skills as a producer. Also, I wanted to be responsible and instrumental in taking decisions in terms of who should be in the film in the capacity of cast and crew, and how the film should look.

My personal ego is way insignificant in front of a good script. I can’t keep satisfying my ego of being called the ‘best’ actor, the ‘highest-paid’ actor or the ‘most versatile’ actor in the industry. All this is too secondary. If I get a good script, I want to do it irrespective of the genre, or worrying about what slot it puts me into. I feel if you have a strong recall value of me as an actor for doing certain kinds of roles, I still look at it in a positive light.

I don’t have any tricks as an actor to portray these roles than to actually believe that this is happening to me. So, it takes a mental toll and burns me out. After Blurr, I decided to just go light on my filmography and not delve into darker zones, because I really need to recover mentally.

Before the day started rolling and after pack-up, I was fully in the producer zone, but even while acting, I was subconsciously bothered. And that dual role of being a producer kept haunting me a bit. After the film got over, I told myself that I need to choose either for a particular project and not be an actor on board, unless absolutely necessary.

I didn’t have an option with those projects coming on OTT because that was the best possible medium to at least present my work to audiences, when theatres were shut. I’d still want to go back to being on the big screen because that’s what I’m an audience to. However, after Haseen Dillruba, I saw the plus side of OTT — which is accessibility and its insane reach.

No. Just because one kind of a genre, a whodunit thriller worked, doesn’t mean people stopped making them. Be it films or docudramas about these psycho killers, they’re a rage right now on OTT. So, you won’t stop making a film on them just because so many such series already exist.

After Blurr, I immediately jumped into Woh Ladki Hai Kahaan, an out-and-out comedy. The director told me, ‘You’ve gone through a lot in the last couple of years with the kind of films and roles you’ve done. For this, I just want you to be yourself and have fun’. This was literally the only brief I got for my character. In fact, all my successive films that I’ve done or signed up, including Dunki, are all relatively light and more fun. So, that helps me detox.

Shooting for one’s maiden production is never easy. The road only got tougher for Taapsee Pannu who took Blurr on floors during the pandemic. The adaptation of Spanish film Julia’s Eyes (2010) sees Pannu play a woman who is rapidly losing her sight while she tries to decode the mystery behind her twin sister’s death. While the makers had initially considered roping in visually impaired people for certain pivotal parts, the plans went awry due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Casting director Kavish Sinha reveals, “We started casting for Blurr when the second wave of COVID-19 hit. Offices were shut, physical auditions were not happening. We cast actors locally from Uttarakhand by watching their self-shot tapes. [For certain] characters [that were depicted as] completely blind, I wanted to cast people from the National Association for the Blind, and other organizations. But we couldn’t do so because of the pandemic. So, we had to make actors play visually impaired characters.”

Sinha credits Pannu for being a hands-on producer. “While she watched all the auditions, the final call rested with director Ajay Bahl. Taapsee shows trust in all her department heads. All selections were done by the director, who didn’t want big [stars], but good actors who will shine in their roles.”

Shiksha Mandal, which puts the spotlight on education scams in the country, is headlined by the ever-dependable Gulshan Devaiah. The actor says the ZEE5 series offered him yet another complex character to add to his filmography. “Aditya [his character] is an ordinary guy, but circumstances in his life force him to be the hero,” he says.

Working with actors he has admired was another reason to say yes to the project. “Pavan Malhotra and I used to meet at the gym. He has always taken a keen interest in my work. I had heard of Gauahar [Khan’s] reputation of [going beyond] a reality TV star and being a good actor. That is true.”

After delivering wonderful performances in Badhaai Do and Shiksha Mandal, Devaiah will round off 2022 with Blurr that sees him opposite Taapsee Pannu. For her maiden production, Pannu chose to adapt the Spanish thriller, Julia’s Eyes (2010), which revolves around a woman who has to investigate her twin sister’s death before she loses her eyesight.

Devaiah is happy about his first collaboration with the actor-producer. “I had a nice time filming Blurr with Taapsee and Ajay [Bahl, director]. Taapsee and I have good on-screen chemistry.”

For now though, he is focusing on his next with Saiyami Kher, which is produced by Anurag Kashyap. Teaming up with Kher has been a joy for him. “We had worked together on Unpaused [2020], but to do a full-length feature film with her is fun. We bonded over the script, and our love for cricket. Our partnership is like that of Sachin [Tendulkar] and [Rahul] Dravid.”

Juggling the two roles of actor-producer can’t possibly be easy. But Taapsee Pannu says the thought of turning producer was “brewing for a while,” resulting in the launch of Outsiders Films. So, while the actor in her is focusing on Shabaash Mithu, she is equally excited about her upcoming productions — Blurr opposite Gulshan Devaiah, and the all-women movie, Dhak Dhak. The decision to take the next step stemmed from her personal experiences.

She recounts, “For a few years [initially], there was a period when I was getting dropped from films because I was not a significant enough name. I kept hearing things like, ‘You suit the part, but you are not a name who people will take notice of.’ It was important to change that first. I had to push back against the recommendations that came for other actors. Now, I am accepted in the industry. I have finally come to a place where if I like a film, it will be made. It will be mounted well and get a release. When I reached here, I decided to call the shots on the stories that I want to tell.”

Through her production house, Pannu wants to back unheard stories. Her past offerings prove that she gravitates towards movies that narrate women’s experiences, batting for their empowerment. “There are times when people say, ‘Arey, women empowerment bohot ho gaya.’ The subject apparently feels jaded to the world. But I want to keep telling these stories because women empowerment hasn’t been given enough weightage in our films. [The subject of] heroes taking revenge or men saving women doesn’t feel exploited, but women standing up for their rights feels overexposed,” she exclaims.

Walking down this road won’t be easy, especially when the industry is still hesitant about betting money on women-led movies. The new producer understands that she will have to play by a few of the rules, at least initially, to have her voice heard. “Heavy female-oriented [subjects] still don’t get the kind of budget they deserve, because there aren’t as many takers as there should be. So, I constantly choose stories that have an undercurrent of what I wish to say. I don’t want my audience to leave without hearing the thoughts I want to convey to them.”

It’s not unusual for Taapsee Pannu to be creatively involved in films that she believes in. Turning producer was then a natural progression for her. In July, the actor announced the launch of her studio, Outsiders Films, following it up with the shoot of her maiden production Blurr. Weeks after having wrapped up the shoot of the psychological thriller in Nainital, Pannu sits content, all the wiser after juggling the double duty of actor-producer.

“I was a different person on that set, unlike on any other project where I have [served] only as an actor. As the producer, I needed to make sure everyone is comfortable, everything is right on the set and that things are completed on time. I had taken on this added pressure,” begins Pannu.

Even as she wants to fulfill the responsibilities of her new role, she is certain that acting must remain her top priority when on set. “I don’t want to [divert my energy]; that’s something I want to correct [on my forthcoming productions]. When I am on the set, I want to be only an actor.”

The thriller, directed by Ajay Bahl, reportedly revolves around Pannu’s Gayatri who is slowly losing her eyesight while trying to investigate the mysterious death of her twin sister. Acknowledging that such a complex role demanded her to be focused, she credits business partner Pranjal Khandhdiya for overseeing the day-to-day production duties.

“Pranjal is hands-on and good at his job. Only after pack-up, I would assess how the day was and whether anything needed to be fixed. On Rashmi Rocket too, I was creatively involved while he did the groundwork. It was a trial run for us to gauge if we could collaborate as partners. That went well, and now, we’re in for a pretty ride,” she beams.

Managing budgets is one of the most crucial aspects of production — an area that Pannu is well-versed with. “I have been mindful of budgets on a lot of other films, where I have worked with my producer friends. I don’t take an active part in deciding [budget allocation] because that would be intrusive, but I’ve been aware of how it has been [divided].”

In her eight-year stint in Bollywood, Taapsee Pannu has gone from playing a commercial heroine to a leading lady whose presence in a film promises interesting content. In a chat with BT, she talks about completing a few projects during the pandemic, turning producer and where she sees her career headed. Excerpts:

It fatigues me and drains me out. When I started working last year, post the lockdown, I went from one film to another. In fact, Rashmi Rocket and the subsequent film (Looop Lapeta) had me running for most parts of the narrative. I wrapped up four films between September and February and completed one or two that needed little work to be done. The fatigue was mental and physical, and at another time, I probably wouldn’t feel the fatigue as much as I felt this time.

I was drained when I joined the cast of Dobaaraa. I was also training for Shabaash Mithu at that time. It was exhausting to train and shoot. The characters are in such different spaces that, at some point, it does tire the mind. I stayed put at home after Dobaaraa wrapped up to charge my batteries before the biopic based on Mithali Raj kicked off. It doesn’t bother me that I keep playing these offbeat women because I have done the typical stuff at the beginning of my career. I’m now enjoying being the grey, bad girl. In the midst of that, Thappad came along as the whitest character I have ever played. I don’t think an actor can ask for more.

Yes, playing the range of characters is challenging and fun. I have waited for years to reach a point in my career where I get scripts that I can’t say no to. I don’t have to say yes to a project merely to keep myself busy, to just work with someone else or make some money.

Yes, it was slightly different from all my other shooting experiences. I was a different person on this set and my patience and tolerance levels shot up incredibly. I have a lot more perspective on how certain things work beyond what an actor has to do in front of the camera. Previously, for all my films, I had to focus on my performance and deliver what the director needed from me. For this film, the downtime after the shoot and the time before I stepped onto the set was where I was a producer, looking into all that needed my attention. When I was on set for the shoot, I was just an actor like I am on any other set. I had to keep my focus on the character and the scenes.

It’s fun to be able to become any character. In fact, I feel it’s dangerous to become complacent in this profession. This liberty to experiment is what this line of work gives you in a big way. You can only grow when you do different things. Today, my aim is to remain a bankable actress for the producers and the audience. At the end of the day, it’s a business where apart from making good films, we also have to be able to make some money.

The material of Blurr may be far from shiny and happy, but Gulshan Devaiah says shooting for the Taapsee Pannu-led psychological thriller was a joyride. The duo recently wrapped up the shoot of the Ajay Bahl-directed venture in Nainital. While the thriller focuses on Pannu’s Gayatri who is slowly losing her eyesight while trying to investigate the mysterious death of her twin sister, Devaiah — who plays her husband Neel — says there is more than meets the eye when it comes to his character.

“Neel [appears] as a nice and understanding man on the outside, but he is unhappy and unfulfilled inside. Coming from a reasonably affluent [family], he doesn’t need to work for a living. Instead, he has taken a stand to support his wife Gayatri, who is a passionate anthropologist. They love each other, but there’s a visible tension in their relationship,” he reveals.

The actor is delighted to feature in Pannu’s maiden production under her banner, Outsider Films. Devaiah states that working with her was exactly as he had imagined. “One of my loveliest experiences has been on the sets of Blurr because it’s so much fun working with Taapsee.”

One must credit Taapsee Pannu for taking the term ‘outsider’ used to refer to actors who have no Godfathers in the industry and turning it on its head. First with her film choices and now with the launch of her production house — Outsider Films. “For someone who didn’t want to be an actor, I found it unthinkable to become a producer,” starts off Pannu.

Not one to confine herself to one role alone, she says, “I have learnt on the job, so I was always aware of how everything is being done. I understood how a one-line idea is fleshed into a full-fledged script and thereon a movie. However, it would feel intrusive to suggest who should be hired for which job or how to package a film. It’s beyond the scope of my job as an actor. That’s when I thought of becoming a producer, so that I could have the power to take my own calls.”

As she wields the baton of a producer, Pannu is sure of steering clear of the director’s chair. “I don’t think I have that bent of mind to handle something that complex.”

The groundwork began on the set of Rashmi Rocket, which is being produced by Ronnie Screwvala, Neha Anand, and Pranjal Khandhdiya. “I knew Pranjal from Soorma [2018]. He wanted me to partner with him, but I didn’t want to divide my energy on set. I heard the storyline [of Rashmi Rocket] in Chennai in 2018. We got screenwriters, dialogue writers, directors, the studio and took it from there. Every step in the film prepared us for the kind of hurdles we would face [with our production house],” explained the actor, adding that they finished the project with some money to spare from the assigned budget despite rescheduling due to Coronavirus and the floods.

Right before Rashmi Rocket wrapped up, Blurr came along. Emboldened by how they pulled off the former, she decided to make it her production debut. Pannu’s brand of films stands for female-fronted stories that get the audience thinking about the lack of gender equilibrium in society. “People tell me I am stereotyped, but I find myself fortunate that I am recognized for a certain kind of story. Outsider Films continues this vision,” she concludes.

Given her keen eye for scripts, it was only a matter of time before Taapsee Pannu would take on the role of a producer and back stories she believed in. Last month, the actor kicked off her maiden production venture, Blurr, in Nainital under the watchful gaze of director Ajay Bahl. Shooting in real locations with celebrities can pose difficulties in terms of crowd management. The director, who is filming crucial sequences at Mall Road in the hill station, reveals that the team has been shooting at night to avoid overcrowding.

“The script of Blurr demanded [a hilly] landscape, and we have found perfect locations like the Mall Road and Nainital Lake to shoot at. Both these places are tourist hubs,” shares Bahl.

He walked into the shoot fully aware of the possible difficulties, but was pleasantly surprised by the outcome. “Shooting in real locations with a popular celebrity like Taapsee can be challenging, but thankfully, everyone has been patient. The locals wait until the shoot is over to click selfies and get autographs.”

The first project rolled out by Pannu’s Outsiders Films also stars Gulshan Devaiah. With the studio, the actor-producer hopes to empower new talent who “come with no [filmy] background like me.”

Like any first-time producer, Taapsee Pannu is giving undivided attention to her maiden project Blurr, which is being shot in Nainital. But before leaving for the hill station, the actor met Srijit Mukherji to understand the way forward for Shabaash Mithu. In June, the noted Bengali filmmaker replaced Rahul Dholakia as the director of the biopic on Indian women’s cricket team captain Mithali Raj.

It is heard that in the recent meeting, Pannu discussed at length her prep and notes on the character that she has been living for the past one year. After it’s a wrap on Blurr, she will begin shooting for the sports drama in early September.

A source reveals, “The biopic was slated to go on floors in April, but the second wave of the pandemic made the team hit the pause button. Srijit is currently in Mumbai, setting the groundwork for the ambitious movie. Once Taapsee returns to the city, the film will start rolling, followed by an international schedule. The director is expected to meet Mithali soon.”