'People who stop creators from making good cinema are the real haiwaans' | Priyadarshan and Boman Irani Interview
Here's the latest update from the Bollywood world:
In a career that has spanned four decades, Priyadarshan has directed almost a hundred films, including 28 in Hindi alone. After comedies for two decades, as he returns to ‘serious’ films with Haiwaan , the director sits down for a chat with Hindustan Times, where he is joined by star Boman Irani .
Adding to this, Priyadarshan talks about creating the world of Haiwaan. Who is a haiwaan? Haiwaan is the story of a man wronged by the legal system who exacts revenge. The only thing standing in his way is a blind man. The movie’s title is not an obvious reference to the villain, as it includes layers about who a haiwaan (demon) really is. Boman is curt in his answer: “Haiwaan is someone who comes in the way of creators making good cinema.” Priyadarshan laughs and says he agrees with this assertion 100%. “There are many (in the industry), he adds. Ask him if he has had his fair share of dealings with such haiwaans, he responds, “Only haiwaans.”
Meanwhile, Haiwaan is inspired by the filmmaker’s own 2016 Malayalam movie Oppam, which starred Mohanlal. And while the two films are sufficiently different, the filmmaker adds, they have one thing in common: Both show the world through the lens of a blind protagonist. In Haiwaan, that protagonist is played by Saif Ali Khan. Talking about this approach, the filmmaker says, “Before writing the original movie, I went to a blind school, where I found all the blind children playing as if they could see. They could recognise their friends by voice. I think one who is born blind believes everyone is blind. He doesn’t know the difference. That is how I created the character played by Saif,” explains Priyadarshan.
Notably, The filmmaker says that he did not have to do much differently to establish the world of this movie and explains his filmmaking philosophy. “One thing I’m very sure of. The first 10 minutes of any movie are never bad, be it any movie in the world. People are waiting to see those 10 minutes,” he says. “Within this time, you have to explain the logic of the movie. Once the story begins, you can’t give new information. All the information about the character is in the first 10 minutes of Haiwaan. Then you take the movie forward.”
As per the latest buzz, Apart from being the proverbial cat-and-mouse game between the characters played by Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan, Haiwaan is also about the moral choices that everyday people face. Boman Irani plays an upright judge who sends an innocent man to prison. Talking about how he approached the character, the star says, “It’s Sophie’s choice, but he has to take a call. He is working on a hunch, sure. The system says one thing, and if my character takes a call, he is doing it because that’s what the law is.” However, Boman says that this injustice cannot be an excuse for vindictive justice or revenge. “If the law is an ass in this case, you can’t use that as an excuse,” sums up the star.
In further updates, Priyadarshan elaborates, “In the judiciary, every judge and lawyer talks about this one choice: proof and conscience. Every judge has experienced a clash between the two. This is what I wanted to convey in this story.”
On top of that, Directed by Priyadarshan, Haiwaan also stars Shriya Pilgaonkar and Saiyami Kher, while Mohanlal makes a cameo appearance. It also marks the late Asrani's final screen appearance. Produced by KVN Productions and Thespian Films, the movie will rollout in theatres on 11 September.
Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Movie Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world. Read More
Source: Hindustan Times