“People can be complicated, not love”, says filmmaker Aanand L Rai hinting at the storyline of his new release Atrangi Re touted as a twisted and complex love triangle starring Sara Ali Khan, Akshay Kumar, and Dhanush in the main lead. “It can be about complicated people but I am telling you a story of love which is not complicated. We have made this film hanste khelte. This film is all about love and I want it to reach the audience the same way, with a lot of love. I am just saying that love has got different forms and all forms are pure. I can’t reveal much. I am probably making it sound more complicated but actually, it is not. People can be complicated, not love,” says Rai.
“We were working on something after Raanjhanaa, we were working on Returns. At that time Himanshu (Sharma, writer) came up with an idea that was just a thought but it went on a backburner. We went on to make other films and felt now is the right time to talk about this bombshell of love called Atrangi Re."
"Everything is atrangi in the film."
"There are twists and turns which you will find quite a rollercoaster. It is a fun film but very layered with all its complexities. It has got a very simple telling, it is a mazedaar story. It wasn’t easy but that is the fun, as a team of actors, writers, DOP, we have been able to tell you a very complicated story in a simple way,” says the director.
The film’s unusual casting has been a talking point. It has aroused curiosity as well as criticism. “It is very crucial that you have to be in your purest state when you are doing your casting. After you have your script you have to reach the right actor. I felt Sara is Rinku because she has got all the potential to get the character right. Honesty, straightforwardness, innocence… are some of the qualities that were required to play Rinku and these come naturally to her. The way she has played the character I can’t imagine anyone else doing it,” he says.
Khan’s pairing with Kumar and Dhanush in the film grabbed eyeballs for their age difference; while Dhanush is 12 years older than 26-year-old Sara, Kumar is 28 years her senior. In the trailer, Khan's character is forced into marriage with Dhanush’s character; however, she seems to be in love with another man, assumed to be Kumar’s character. Reacting to this, Rai says, “You have just seen three minutes of the film, let’s not reach the conclusion, let’s enjoy. You are feeling something, you may be feeling 100 percent right, I am not denying that. But don’t reach a conclusion. If I have shown patience in making the film you show patience in watching it. I know why Sara, Akshay, and Dhanush are part of the film. There is no strategy behind it. It is the requirement of my story. There is so much of atrangi-ness in all three of them, so it is an apt casting (laughs).”
Atrangi Re marks the second collaboration between Rai and Dhanush after the actor’s 2013 Bollywood debut Raanjhanaa. “It took us seven years to get back together. He is such a brilliant actor, it is always an asset for the director to tell a story with him. He transforms so well and he understands the reason to tell the story so well. He is a partner when you get down on the floor to tell a story. It is a privilege to have him back especially for Atrangi Re. It was a lot of fun also with Sara and Akshay, both are magical in their spaces,” says Rai.
Kumar is said to have a small role in the film but his belief in the director and Rai's “strong understanding of complex human emotions” were one of the many reasons that the actor wanted to be part of Rai’s world. ‘I love the world he (Rai) creates... it is vibrant and colorful, yet complicated, which fascinates me’, Kumar had said. “Akshay is coming out with something which nobody can expect. He surprises you every time. Atrangi Re is yet another color of Akshay. He was very happy about the story and his best line was – ‘If you have the guts to tell this story why can’t I play the character, why can’t I act in it’. He took it as a challenge. And it is great to see stars like him saying ‘yes’ to a story and going for a character. Normally big stars first see a character and they ask you to work on the story. Here I had gotten a story and Akshay said he wants to be part of it,” reveals Rai. When you tell Rai that Akshay was captivated with the film’s storyline, he laughs saying, “Akshay is a simple man, he is not at all complicated, and he is very secure. He never came with a baggage of 150 plus films behind him. Getting a chance to work with him and filling your colors in his stardom was fun. He is the soul of the story even if it is a small role.”
Further, talking about his passion for exploring complex human emotions, Rai says, “It comes from just one thing… that is you are willing to fall in love. We are scared of falling in love because we are scared of getting hurt. The minute you get rid of that fear, you will understand people and their emotions better. I have been fortunate enough to meet people who are so willingly available with all their emotions.”
Kumar has said that Rai’s passion for storytelling, his conviction has already made him collaborate with the director thrice. Their next project Raksha Bandhan that kickstarted in June this year is complete. “The pace with which we finished Raksha Bandhan was magical. We actually enjoy working together. We understand each other well and like the way we see our lives. We respect each other’s opinions, perspectives, so that really works for us. This is how you make or create something new, something exciting.” Rai will be collaborating with Akshay for the third time as a producer. “We are working on a script and we are producing together, he is acting in it,” said the filmmaker.
The film’s success or failure does not bother Rai as much as making formulaic films, “because there isn’t one”. Hence, the failure of his last release – Shah Rukh Khan - Katrina Kaif - Anushka Sharma – starrer Zero didn’t affect him much as he says, “People who make cinema learn with every effort. If I learned something from my successful film Tanu Weds Manu, I had something to learn from (the failure of) Zero. I just took some time but then I was ready with one more story to tell. I enjoy the process; the process has to be beautiful. The day you start thinking that it is a formula you are bound to get stuck somewhere. I knew when I made Tanu Weds Manu I knew it is not a formula, that is why I went for Raanjhanaa, and after Raanjhanaa again I said it is not a formula and I went for Tanu Weds Manu Returns and after Returns I said it is not a formula and I went for Zero. Zero not working with the audience again made me believe that there is nothing called formula. You have to struggle to make a film or a story. Every time you get down on a floor it should make you a little nervous and excited and that search of how to tell the story continues.”
He furthers, “Of course, commercial success bothers me, maybe subconsciously but I have always felt that there is a certain kind of conversation between me and my audience. I can’t see them but I can feel them. When I am telling a story and I get a reaction I know where I went wrong or right but at the same time when it has gone right that doesn’t mean that it is a formula, it is a feeling that has lent well. That is what I want to continue. If I get convinced that it is a formula then I won’t be able to feel my audience.” And to feel his audience, Rai believes in staying close to his roots with every film of his. “Staying close to my roots and staying original are the two things that are very important for me. That is the reason why my films are more -- what you call a small town, I call it middle class, which is me. When I am consciously going closer to my roots it remains what I am, so maybe at the subconscious level this works for me,” he says.
Atrangi Re went on floors in Varanasi in March last, however, the shoot had to be halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown. Rai says that he used the time during the lockdown to prepare for the schedules of Atrangi Re, and as and when they got a bit of opening with lockdown relaxing, he shot in Madurai, Delhi and Mumbai. “All of us went through tough times, pandemic disturbed a lot of us but I was very sure that the minute I get an opening, the minute things settle down for a bit the only thing which can keep my immunity high is my story. The more I am close to my story, my immunity is boosted. My stories are my immunity booster,” he says.
Atrangi Re will have a direct-to-digital release on Disney + Hotstar on 24 December. While Rai accepts that they are missing out on theatre experience considering that theatres have opened up and certain films have performed well, he does understand the significance of OTT and its reach. “It was a difficult call; initially I felt that we were missing out on theatrical release but what we have to learn and understand is digital is also a medium and my film is going to so many countries. I have a number of viewers waiting for me, so what is important for me as a filmmaker, how many people I am reaching, how many people are listening to my story and that is satisfying. Definitely, I would love to see both these mediums flourish. I want theatres to be as bright as before but you can’t sideline OTT. It is a great medium. You have to learn, I am learning. Now I can say, yes, I am really looking forward to it,” he concludes.
Seema Sinha is a Mumbai-based mainstream entertainment journalist who has been covering Bollywood and television industry for over two decades. Her forte is candid tell-all interviews, news reporting and newsbreaks, investigative journalism and more. She believes in dismissing what is gossipy, casual, frivolous and fluff.
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