Sara has a bright future ahead, says Abhishek

When I met Sara, I saw a very strong personality, and someone who wanted to do good work. But she had no acting experience although she came from a film background. ABHISHEK KAPOOR,

FILMMAKER

Every time Abhishek Kapoor gets down to directing a film, his main concern is to “not repeat himself”. The director of Kedarnath says that it’s important for him to discover a new world through a project. Talking about the inspiration behind Kedarnath, he says, “If I’ve done a film like Rock On!! then it doesn’t excite me to do another similar film. When you attempt something new, it is humbling. On a recent trip to Vaishno Devi (pilgrimage site in Jammu &Kashmir), I developed a new perception towards things. Some of the pilgrims who come to visit the Goddess have to be carried on the backs of porters for 16 to 18kms. Some of these porters are Muslims and they do this on a daily basis. I thought this was a beautiful phenomenon. The floods in Kedarnath in 2013 were devastating, and so many people died and went missing. I thought it was important for us to really reflect upon who we are as people.”

So was Sara Ali Khan the first choice for the female lead in the film? “I wanted to cast someone more established, but acquiring their dates would have taken a long time and I needed to start work soon. A common friend of Sara and me introduced us to each other. When I met her, I saw a very strong personality, and someone who wanted to do good work. She had no acting experience although she came from a film background. She hadn’t done any acting course. So, one had to really trigger up the speed. There was a different department in my head that was kind of training her to be a professional performer, so that she doesn’t fall short on that front. And she was very hard working and diligent. She has a bright future ahead.”

Sushant Singh Rajput, who plays the lead in this film hasn’t tasted any success in the last two years. So ask Abhishek if an actor’s boxoffice graph also matters while casting him, and Abhishek says, “To get box-office success, you have to work on your product. Sushant is a very good actor. I worked with him in Kai Po Che (2013). When he came on set, I was blown away by what he brought to the table. He went through a slump, but as a performer you cannot point a finger at him.”

PHOTO: VIRAL BHAYANI, Sara Ali Khan