#She was from a middleclass family that was one of those 'we are better than you' types

[thediktatortot]

Prompt based off a friend's parents actions towards my friend, for Steve:

Post Vecna, Steve's father is upset that Steve has gone no where and refuses to work with him at the company. Steve's mother feels that Steve has wasted the opportunities and easy life they have given Steve.

Both Steve's parents decide to hand him a legally written document that states Steve either leaves the house permanently with no help from them what so ever from here on, or he has to pay back 20k to his parents for the trouble he's caused them.

[salmankhanholics]

★ Ali Abbas Zafar: If a superhero is selfless, half the battle is won..

Roshmila Bhattacharya | April 24th 2019

Ali Abbas Zafar explains what makes Salman Khan a crowdpuller; recounts his journey from biochemistry to Bollywood’s wonderland

In jeans and a Tee, Ali Abbas Zafar looks more like a guy-next-door than Bollywood’s A-list director. His Eid offering, the Salman Khan, Bhushan Kumar, Atul Agnihotri-produced Bharat, will open on June 5 and Ali is in the midst of post-production. But when he settles into his chair at a suburban studio, there’re no signs of rush. In fact, there’s a rare thehraav in his demeanour, a mathematical clarity in his thought process as he states that cinema is an applied art and not a fi ne art. Excerpts:

■ Mere Brother Ki Dulhan, Gunday, Sultan, Tiger Zinda Hai, and now Bharat, you are one of the most sought-after directors today. Enjoying the high or does the pressure give you sleepless nights?

(Laughs) Oh, lots of sleepless nights but since I’m doing what makes me happy, the days are satisfying. The pressure increases when it’s a big Eid release for a pan-India audience. There are people who watch one-two films a year and measuring up to their expectations keeps me on my toes.

■ You were doing your masters in biochemistry at the Delhi University. What brought you to Bollywood?

I’m a filmmaker by accident. Kirori Mal College has an active theatre group, Players, whose alumni includes Mr Bachchan (Amitabh), Satish Kaushik, Kabir Khan and Habib Faisal. I wanted to join the Indian Administrative Services (IAS) but after becoming a part of this group, I realised this is what makes me happy. So, though I had no background in TV or film — my dad is in the armed forces and my mom is a teacher — your typical-small town boy came to Mumbai to tell stories.

■ Tell us about your first attempt at direction?

That was Mere Brother Ki Dulhan (the 2011 romcom). The simple story, told earnestly, grew out of real life. It was set in Dehradun where I’d grown up and Delhi where I was studying. My brother lived in London while I was a struggling assistant director in Mumbai, like Imran Khan’s character. It was a customised Bollywood film with a three-act structure, an emotional and musical graph. It struck a chord.

■ Did you get the girl in real life?

(Laughs) No, but you can live your dreams in films.

■ What kind of films did you grow up on?

In mid-90s Dehradun, we either played sports or watched movies. I saw many films with friends after school and on holidays. But the only film I saw at home was Deewar which my dad said balanced out right and wrong in a human way.

■ Would you like to remake Deewar?

Sultan was very close to Deewar in the way its protagonist’s self-esteem/ego swings between right and wrong, and his redemption happens when he hits rockbottom and comes from within. Islam says the strongest jihad is the one you fight within yourself.

■ Sultan could have played any sport, why wrestling?

He could have been a rock star too, but I chose to make him a sportsman because I’d played hockey and football. It was wrestling because hundreds watch you fall in the akhada, making a loss a public humiliation, and the rise a public celebration. Kushti is a centuries-old sport that rises from the grassroots and has the soul of Hindustan which made it easier for the mass audience to identify with.

■ Bharat is the journey of one man over six decades, reflecting the country’s history. How old are you to attempt a fi lm with an epic sweep?

(Laughs) I’m 36, but it’s not so much about experience. If you understand life, even if you haven’t lived it but seen it in those around, you can mirror it. This is my third film with Salman (Khan) and much of the maturity in my work comes from his experience.

Bharat is the story of every Indian, of togetherness and responsibilities. A line in the film goes, “Desh logon se banta hai aur logon ki pehchan unke parivar se hoti hai.” And as the nation is a family, that’s the metaphor Bharat hinges on without being preachy or political.

■ Why adapt a Korean film, Ode To My Father, to tell the story of Bharat?

Emotions are universal and what I liked about Ode To My Father was the coherency of the emotions and the text. We’ve added a lot of Indian cultural subtext, the film reflects the events and changes from 1947 to 2010. My dad believes if you pick the right story that says the right things, you can’t go wrong. While many Hindi films revolve around the mother and son, the father has often been portrayed as a hard disciplinarian. My relationship with my dad and Salman’s with his (Salim Khan) is different and at the core of the film. That’s why only Salman could play Bharat.

■ How did the title come about?

Since the film isn’t only about a father and son, I didn’t want to translate Ode To My Father. I was tossing in bed at 5 am when the title came to me. Hours later, when I met SK and Atul I told them I had a title, Bharat. They froze for two seconds, then Salman said “yes”. Since this man symbolises the nation what better than Bharat.

■ How do your parents view your phenomenal success?

(Smiles) My father is my hero and my mother my superhero. They’re simple people, have never visited a set, not even mine. They’re happy for me but still urge me to complete my education. My brother has two MBAs and a Masters in Social Work, my parents are both post-graduates, I’m the only uneducated one (Laughs).

■ Salman’s Tiger comes out of a room full of poisononous gas, guns blazing, and the audience cheers. How do you create this suspension of disbelief?

Whether it’s Gunday, Tiger Zinda Hai, Sultan or Bharat, you have to connect with the audience in the first 20 minutes by showing something the character does or believes in that makes them root for him. Once that happens, they are with him even when he single-handedly decimates an entire army. If a superhero is selfless, and you have a star like Salman Khan, whom the audience loves, playing him, half the battle is won.

■ What makes Salman a superhero?

His honesty and earnestness. His communication with his audience is very direct. And even when he lives a character, Salman Khan doesn’t disappear 100 per cent. Whether its Tiger, Sultan or Bharat, his magical presence in there in the characters.

■ Has he evolved through the three films you’ve done together?

He was very evolved in the first film itself. I was the one who learnt from him. SK is a deep, mature and beautiful actor/human being, and when he identifies with an emotion, it just flows. There’s a scene in Sultan when he takes off his shirt and looks at his slightly out-of-shape body in the mirror. He avoided doing it till the last day, then suddenly stripped and faced the camera. It was a one-take shot and I couldn’t have asked for anything better. He’s so spontaneous when he’s in character. A star needs to be an actor, or he’ll fizzle out soon. Salman has been around for 30 years and his stardom has only grown.

■ Katrina Kaif and you share a beautiful relationship and she came on-board just days before Bharat rolled; after Priyanka Chopra confi ded her secret in you in the “nick of time” and exited.

Priyanka was doing the film but things happened. As a friend, she shared it with me and I told that her life is most important. She’s still a close friend. We laugh and talk twice a month. I’m very happy for her.

And I’m grateful to Katrina for stepping in. I was honest with her and told her I was sending her a script. If she liked it, we’d discuss it further. She’s my closest friend in Mumbai, we come from similar middleclass backgrounds, our values are the same, and we discuss everything. But on the work front, we’re very transparent with each other. If she doesn’t like something I’m doing, she lets me know and vice versa. In an industry where friendships don’t last even for months, ours has continued for over a decade.

■ What was her reaction to Bharat?

She told me it’s one of my best scripts and she’d do anything to be a part of the film. She’s done a phenomenal job. She’s grown as an actor, has a better command over the language now. She was loved in Mere Brother Ki Dulhan, Tiger Zinda Hai and even her performance in Zero was well received. She’s in top form and the maturity she has brought to Madam Sir’s character is commendable. There were times when on the sets, Salman would take me to a corner and say, “Sir, yeh scene to Katrina le gayi, ab mujhe kuch karna padega.” (Laughs) We are both very fond of her and together in a happy space, so he can crack such jokes.

■ Is your next with Ranveer Singh?

We’re friends, we keep meeting and discussing ideas, but there’s nothing concrete.

■ Sultan 2 or a Tiger 3 happening?

I have a couple of stories and I’d like to return with Tiger someday. I also want to do a love story.

■ With Salman?

(Smiles) There’s a possibility, he’s a big romantic hero. And I always narrate my stories to him first, he’s very objective. Aditya Chopra is another strong influence. In our field, it’s hard to find people you can trust, I’m lucky I have them as my first bouncing boards. But to get out of Bharat, a journey with many shades, I want to do a big action film next. But till Eid, my focus is Bharat.

Mumbai Mirror