Filmmaker Anand l Rai talks to Divya Kaushik about Raanjhanaa, a love story starring Sonam, Dhanush and Abhay Deol, dealing with youth, loss of trust and fear of heartbreak
After his first commercial success, Tanu Weds Manu, Anand l Rai was flooded with offers. Instead of the quickie route, he wanted something more challenging.
“Raanjhanaa wasn’t an easy film to make,” said Rai about his talked about project.“It needed a special cast and script focussing on the purity and innocence of the love story.”
Raanjhanaa presents Sonam Kapoor and Dhanush as a pair of 17-year-olds falling in love. It was mostly shot in Benaras and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi. Anand explained that the idea was born from his observations about love in present times.
“When I look at the present generation I feel they are stronger, more determined and confident than we assume. But when it comes to relationships, they seem to lack trust and confidence. They believe in love, but not people. Nor do they trust enough to love wholeheartedly. Fear of heartbreak prevents them from getting into committed relationships.” He mused, “They go around a few times, have three cappuccino and black coffee together, then declare a break up. I wanted to go back to a period when love grew over the years. Indians are known to trust easily, so why is this missingIJ”
The director said he’s not presenting a critique. “The movie shows how confident youth are, be they in Benaras or Delhi. The common feature is they are confident of everything they do.”
His first film Tanu Weds Manu was also a love story. It was set in the small town of Kanpur and featured middle class India. “My stories will reflect the heart and spirit of India,” commented the filmmaker who was brought up in a middle class family. His upbringing influences his choice of stories.
“I grew up with times when films by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Raj Kapoor formed a staple source of entertainment. If I am able to achieve even five per cent of what those guys did, it will be a big thing. To sustain quality is tough. I was brought up in a middle class family — my mother was a government school teacher. The environment ar home was never so strict that we were prevented from watching movies or listening to good songs. I remember sleeping on terrace as a child during summer, as my father sang old Bollywood melodies. Sometimes both my parents sang a duet. A love for good, soulful music was ingrained in me as a child,” stated the filmmaker.
He denied reports that Shahid Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha were earlier approached for lead roles. “Raanjhanaa required a cast that could easily be presented as teenagers and who could do justice to the script. There’s no dearth of talent in the industry. But not every actor fits that space. Dhanush was perfect. He’s a brilliant actor. He had to work hard on his dialect, but actors have to prepare for every role in a certain way. Abhay Deol’s role is not a cameo. It’s a short role, yes. But it has depth.”