Hindustan Times (Patna) - Hindustan Times (Patna) - Live
TURNING TO TRIED, TESTED PAIRS
In a bid to belt out a hit, filmmakers are signing up lead jodis who have been successful at the box office in the past
While 2017 will see a whole lot of fresh pairings in Bollywood films, there are quite a few lead actors who would be teaming up, yet again. Filmmaker Aanand L Rai has roped in actors Ayushmann Khurrana and Bhumi Pednekar for his upcoming film. The two were lauded as a married couple in Bhumi’s debut Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015). Actors Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma, who worked in Anushka’s debut Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008) and Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012), have teamed up for Imtiaz Ali’s next. Akshay Kumar will share screen space with Amy Jackson in a sci-fi thriller after he co-starred with her in Singh Is Bling (2015). Clearly, tried and tested pairs are a hit among filmmakers, and they’re sticking to it. Speaking about the trend, trade analyst Amul Mohan says, “If you cast someone new there’s a risk because you don’t know how the chemistry will be. But when stars have worked before, and belted a hit, filmmakers know the pairing will work.” And do tried and tested pairs work with the audience too? Ayushmann says, “Of course there’s excitement when it comes to seeing a hit pair together. But, they have to bring something different on screen in the second outing, and the content has to be good.” Filmmaker Homi Adajania, who directed Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone in Cocktail (2012) after audiences loved them in Love Aaj Kal (2009), agrees that at the end it all amounts to the strength of the content. “If a lead pair has worked out well before, the audience will obviously be more accepting of the combination, but yet it’ll all depend on how good the narrative is and whether it helps enhance the chemistry of the leading pair.” However, actor Sana Khan feels the film business is unpredictable and there can’t be a set formula. “Some lead pairs have given back-to-back hits, while others have failed,” she says.