Showing posts with label Jab Khuli Kitaab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jab Khuli Kitaab. Show all posts
Saurabh Shukla returns from break for his directorial; to shoot remaining portions of King
9:50 AM
Saurabh Shukla, who had taken a break from acting to focus on his directorial venture, reveals he is set to resume Shah Rukh Khan’s King shoot
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; March 12, 2026)
In the last few years, the actor in Saurabh Shukla had taken a backseat as he helmed his Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia-starrer Jab Khuli Kitaab, and then worked towards its release. Slowly but surely, acting called out to him.
Shukla, who shot Subedaar earlier, is now gearing up to resume the shoot of Shah Rukh Khan’s King, which also features the superstar’s daughter Suhana Khan. “I shot for it [last year], and I will shoot the remaining portions [soon],” he says.
Taking a break from acting to shape his directorial venture meant letting go of the financial security that acting projects offer. But Shukla believes the pay-off is richer. He shares, “From an actor’s perspective, [taking a break] is difficult, it’s also stupid at times. But when I was living it, it was easy. Physically, I cannot be present at two places.”
Last week, he had two releases — while Anil Kapoor’s Subedaar dropped on Prime Video, Jab Khuli Kitaab began streaming on Zee5 — each showing a different facet of his art. Acting, directing, and writing can be too much to handle, but Shukla has too many dreams to fulfil in this lifetime.
“I’m a firm believer that there is only one life. So, I have no plans of saying, ‘I will act in this life, and direct in the next,’” he smiles, adding that writing hones one’s acting. “I always say, ‘If you want to be an actor, please write. Look at paintings, sing, pursue music because it gives you a sense of rhythm. Everything is interrelated.”
Dimple Kapadia said in her beautiful, sexy voice, ‘I’m doing Jab Khuli Kitaab, nobody else will do it’-Saurabh Shukla
4:36 PM
Director Saurabh Shukla, who felt Dimple Kapadia was too big a star to front ‘Jab Khuli Kitaab’, recalls being surprised when she said yes in three days
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; March 4, 2026)
Saurabh Shukla believed he would need Lady Luck to get his desired actors for his directorial venture, Jab Khuli Kitaab. Who knows whether it was good fortune or the power of a good script, but Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia agreed to front his family comedy in days.
Revealing that he went to Kapur’s Versova office to hand the script — that revolves around an aged couple whose marriage is shaken by the unravelling of a secret — to him, Shukla recalled, “Pankaj said, ‘I will read it and tell you.’ Within a week, he said yes.”
When Kapadia’s name was suggested for the female lead, the writer and director initially shot down the idea. He thought she would be too big to front his mid-size movie. “She is such a huge star! At that time, she had done [Christopher] Nolan’s film [Tenet] and would have had no shortage of films. I would give my right arm to get her! So, we sent her the script.”
Then came the twist in the tale. “On the third day, I got a call and she said in her beautiful, sexy voice, ‘Saurabh, I’m doing this film, nobody else will do it.’ I couldn’t believe it. Later, we had a chat where she discussed every nuance of the script. In her, I saw a woman who is not only talented, but has also lived a full life.”
(Crisp) Movie Review: JAB KHULI KITAAB by FENIL SETA
3:49 PM
Jab Khuli Kitaab, which has released today on Zee5, is the story of an old couple who are about to get divorced. It is directed by Saurabh Shukla and is based on his play by the same name. The film starts on a moving note and the conflict soon arises. From here, a bizarre scene dilutes the impact. Thereafter, the film gets better, especially with the entry of the lawyer (Aparshakti Khurana). However, the bond shared by the old couple is what keeps the interest going. The climax could have been touching. Shockingly, the makers depict the developments in the form of a voiceover. This would have worked fine in the play the film is adapted from. But cinematically, it fails to impress. Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia wonderfully play their layered characters. Aparshakti Khurana is adorable, as expected. Manasi Parekh (Asha; judge) plays a half-baked character, but performance-wise, she is first rate. Nauheed Cyrusi (Farnaaz) is lovely and it's a pleasure to see her after a hiatus. Samir Soni (Param) has a crucial role and he leaves a mark. Sunil Palwal (Jignesh) and Devyani Ratanpal (Sujata) are decent. All in all, Jab Khuli Kitaab is a poor man's Kapoor & Sons and is an average flick.
My rating - ** ½ out of 5!
My rating - ** ½ out of 5!
The feeling of getting to work with Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia is surreal-Aparshakti Khurana
8:20 AM
Aparshakti on working with Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia in Jab Khuli Kitaab
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; January 30, 2022)
It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but for Aparshakti Khurana, comedy comes with ease. And that’s exactly how the actor approached his role in Applause Entertainment and Shoe Strap Films’ slice of life comedy, Jab Khuli Kitaab. “Getting into the skin was not difficult for me. It’s a comedy and I have done a few of them to approach them with ease,” said the actor, who plays a lawyer in the film.
Not many know that Khurana used to be a legal assistant to senior lawyers. “I am a lawyer in real life. I have [also] been meeting lawyers in lower courts to understand their body language. They [seem more] earthy and rooted than high court and Supreme Court lawyers.”
The film revolves around an older couple — played by Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia — seeking a divorce after being married for 50 years. Helmed by Saurabh Shukla, Jab Khuli Kitaab is a stage-to-screen adaptation of the director’s play of the same name.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to work with such experienced and talented actors like Pankaj Kapur ji and Dimple Kapadia ma’am, who have perfected the craft. I have grown up watching their movies. The feeling of getting to work with them is surreal. There is so much to learn. [The hope is for] many more projects like this one,” said Khurana.
Instead of faffing or b****ing about other people, I write-Saurabh Shukla
8:32 AM
Actor Saurabh Shukla opens up about his latest play, a relationship drama called Jab Khuli Kitaab, which he’s written, directed and stars in
Ekta Mohta (MID-DAY; September 16, 2018)
In Jab Khuli Kitaab, Saurabh Shukla the director cast Saurabh Shukla the actor reluctantly. “I’m in one of the main roles, which is an accident,” he says over the phone from Lucknow.
“I never wanted to be in that role. I tried many actors, but it’s not easy to find seasoned, working actors for theatre, because everybody has some work or the other. I kept trying, I kept trying, I kept trying, and I realised that if I kept waiting, I’ll lose this production. So, I decided to step in.”
When Shukla repeated the same sentiment to another seasoned, working actor, Danish Husain, outside Prithvi Theatre one day, Husain did the only sensible thing: he volunteered. Hence, Jab Khuli Kitaab is packed with well-loved actors such as Shukla, Husain and Irawati Harshe, and 22 other old and new faces. “You have to understand that this has been a real nightmare,” says Shukla, of the casting. “There are approximately 25 people onstage. This is a humongous, huge cast by any standard. A small stage will not be able to [host] so many people.”
Since Aadyam, the Aditya Birla Group’s annual theatre initiative, doesn’t do small, the two found a perfect match in each other. Which is more than what can be said about the play’s lead characters: Gopal (played by Shukla) and Anusuya (Harshe), who are seeking a divorce after half-a-century of togetherness.
Shukla, who also wrote the play, says, “I was interested in discovering that in the middle of a situation, where there is an old relationship and the family is on the verge of breaking down, from there emerges a new relation that is not based on anything hidden. It is not based on any lie, because the truth is out in its full nudity. And you have accepted that truth. So, when you discover something about your partner and still something binds you with him, it will be much more pure, much more honest. I took the cue from one of Rumi’s lines which says that the light always enters where the crack is. That has been the driving force of this.”
But what can possibly be Shukla’s driving force is tough to gauge. While his hands are full with acting assignments (most recently, as the cutie-pie judge in the two Jolly LLBs), he’s also writing full-time. This is his third play, after 2 To Tango 3 To Jive and Barff. He tells me he suffers from a condition that’s only as common as writer’s block: he can’t stop. “If you’re a smoker, you find the time to smoke. In the same way, I keep writing. I have always said in my earlier interviews that I hate writing; it’s a tedious process. But it has become an integral part of my life. When I’m not writing, I’m searching for stories. When you’re acting, you’re not busy the whole day; you’re sitting in your van. So, instead of faffing or b****ing about other people, I write.”
Where: Royal Opera House, Mama Padmanand Marg, Girgaon
When: September 29, 7.30 pm, and September 30, 4.00 pm and 7.30 pm
Entry: Rs 300 - Rs 1,250
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