Kundan Shah: From the heart!

By Fuad Omar.

Kundan Shah is a writer-director with his own brand and genre of films. He has his own conviction of tackling a subject which aims to enlighten and entertain, be it the hilarious Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro which won him the National Award, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa which bagged him the Filmfare Critics Award or Kya Kehna which was a path-breaking film that was matched with box office success. This director cannot be slotted into one category as he seems to keep returning with a new story relevant to each generation and that too with his own style of family drama and light-heartedness. His latest film Dil Hai Tumhaara has a story scripted by himself and Rajkumar Santoshi, and the music of the film by Nadeem Shravan ensured it soared up the charts. The film is an ensemble cast of Rekha, Mahima Chaudhary, Arjun Rampal, Jimmy Shergill and Preity Zinta, who is the central character around who the story revolves.

Q Your previous film Kya Kehna did great business and literally put Preity Zinta on the map. After such a huge success, why the long gap before your next film?

Yes, you are right it has been a long gap between Kya Kehna and Dil Hai Tumhaara but there is no special reason for it. During this time I was working on the script of DHT and poured my heart into the film’s scripting and direction. Despite me being around for the past so many years I have only done a few films because I take my own time scripting and shooting a film. I don’t believe in rushing things because one wrong decision or action can prove detrimental to the film.

Q How did you conceive this film?

It actually came to mind while I was directing Kya Kehna. I was confident of the film endearing itself to people of every age and taste and the film did vindicate my confidence. Therefore I decided once more on a subject that would once again regale the audiences with family values and fresh romance with the scope for lilting melodies, just like Kya Kehna.

Q In this film you’ve cast a very established Rekha, a short-term veteran in Preity and a relatively popular Mahima. The newcomers this time are Arjun Rampal and Jimmy Shergill, what made you decide on such a fresh cast?

The newcomers and young actors were the need of the script. These people were chosen because they are young and very talented too. Their characters contribute to the film’s romantic aspect and are very different. Jimmy plays a ventriloquist and relies on a dummy to reveal his emotions. Arjun has played a very different role than the dashing ones he is used to, he has taken a risk and excelled in comedy. Mahima plays Preity’s sister but there are undertones of love and jealousy as occurs with sibling rivalry and the fight for a mother’s affections. It deals with all these and I needed competent actors to ensure what I conceived would come alive on screen.

Q Preity Zinta has stolen the film and delivered a fantastic performance. She seems to be your golden girl after two successively good films.

Working with Preity in Kya Kehna was a sweet experience. She is a fine actress with the chutzpah of a rare kind and an unbridled energy. She enlivens every one of her scenes with a versatile performance. It was her performance in Kya Kehna that made me repeat her in DHT, and I am sure she will once more endear herself to the audiences as you yourself have mentioned how much you liked her in the film.

Q What made you select Rekha for the role of the strong-willed mother?

Rekha is not the archetypal mother in this film. She is a politician too and so requires to think logically and with consequences in mind. For this double edged role of an intelligent yet emotional mother, I thought Rekha was the best choice. People will see the mother figure almost redefined by this film as I portray her as a strong headed woman who is successful in life, as many working mothers are today.

Q You worked with Tips and the Tauranis in Kya Kehna and have once again this time with DHT, what’s that experience been like?

It is fantastic. During the making of Kya Kehna I developed a great rapport with Ramesh Taurani and Kumar Taurani, they are the ideal producers who trust their directors and allow them a lot of creative freedom that is usually controlled. They take great interest in the film’s making, I am really very comfortable working with them. I am going to direct one more film for Tips, the discussions for the next project are already on.

Q Your film’s music has once more become popular courtesy of catchy Nadeem Shravan tunes, are you happy with the film’s music? I felt it was very Kundan Shah.

Exactly, they succeeded in getting the feel of my film across. The music is doing very well and this is because it is decent in lyrics, lilting in melody and soft on the heart. The picturisations of the songs are suited to the music. Nadeem Shravan have once more proved themselves and their songs have gained instant popularity. I am sure the film’s songs will reach a crescendo with the film’s release.

Q It is said the taste of the audience has changed with a new demand for films catering to the youth and the college crowd.

A good film is one that appeals to people of every age and taste.

Q Are you happy with how DHT has shaped up?

Very happy, please tell all readers of Asiangigs.com to go and watch the movie with their families and enjoy it, I am sure they will. The overseas audience will relate to it as much as the Indian one, because it has a modern girl trying do the right thing but can do nothing right, a working mother, a sister and love. It’s a complete film.

So there you have Mr Kundan Shah talking about Dil Hai Tumhaara, but how is the film itself?

Dil Hai Tumhaara has a great first half and Arjun in a comedic and very unconventional role is hilarious, but the film is an out and out Preity Zinta film and she delivers a superb performance. I found the characterisations of everyone but Rekha and Preity very weak, with no real etched out thoughts or actions, which led me to be disappointed with Arjun’s character in the second half, Jimmy’s lack of a character at all and Alok Nath’s inconsistencies as a father who seems to have no clue or decision making authority whatsoever. However, despite these flaws, it is a decent film and worth a watch because Preity is fabulous and Arjun is great in the first half, and it also has some good emotional moments and a decent and different storyline. My only other criticism is it attempts to deal with too many threads which it fails to tie up in the culmination of each one. The songs are average, but I liked the picturisation of Dil Laga Liya Hai which sees Jimmy and Preity dancing like a ventriloquist’s puppet. As for the puppet itself, called Rangeela, the less I say the better, but then again kids might like it because it’s big headed and colourful. Overall the film is definitely worth a watch because it’s an interesting and different story, has a very different and funny performance by Arjun Rampal, an amazing performance by Preity and is packaged in the traditional Kundan Shah mould, so if you like his films, go see it!