‘With passion, you can achieve anything’

Juggling between music and film projects, Bhushan Kumar continuously strives to create something different

He took control of the family-owned music company, T-Series, in 1997, after the death of his father, Gulshan Kumar. Since then, Bhushan Kumar has transformed the company into an entertainment behemoth. As Kumar becomes one of the most prolific film producers, while ruling the music space with unique concepts such as Mixtape, we catch up with him about films, music and a biopic on his father.

You are handling a number of films, along with music-related projects...

Right from the start, I’ve kept notes of everything. I have diaries filled with all that I have to do. I want be hands-on with everything. I believe, if you want to master a business, you should know it inside out. I think that habit has enabled me to handle a vast number of projects. Initially, it was just music and I used to attend sittings with singers in recording sessions. Before that, I was into acquisition. I would acquire music, promote it, and sell. At that time, we got artistes such as Jagjit Singh, Adnan Sami and Pankaj Udhas on board. Things changed when I ventured in pop albums. I feel, if you are passionate about your work, you can achieve anything.

In September, you have had three big films. Is it challenging to manage all of them?

I never thought about it in that manner since all the films are from diverse genres. Baadshaho is different from Simran, which is again different from Bhoomi. Also, I have Chef coming up, which deals with the relationship between a son and his father, who is a chef. The intention has always been to do films on varied topics. The audience should be able to distinguish each film. For instance, the Luv Ranjan film, releasing on November 3 is in the similar zone as Pyaar Ka Punchnama (2011) but is still very different. The actors are same.

You are set to produce Mogul, a biopic on your late father, Gulshan Kumar. It must be close to your heart?

It’s ‘the’ film for us; there is no film bigger than Mogul. I’ve got an opportunity to make a film on my father and it’s extremely close to my heart. Even for our company, this is the biggest task. We are not making this film with a commercial point of view. Right from actor Akshay Kumar (he plays Gulshan Kumar in the film) to the director, no one is talking about money with me. That shows how much they are emotionally attached to this project. We want to tell the world about him, his life and his deeds. Even, I learnt many unknown facets on my father while reading the script. Moreover, I’ve got a lot of blessings from people.

For us, there is no film bigger than Mogul. I’ve got an opportunity to make a film on my father and it’s extremely close to my heart. BHUSHAN KUMAR, PRODUCER

What’s your plan of action visàvis all your new films?

Now that we have gained a lot of confidence, we have decided to make ten films a year. And I can manage them as I am surrounded by creative people. While a few of these films are my solo productions, I am also collaborating with others. For example, I am doing three films with Luv Ranjan, and I have tied up with Vikram Malhotra (producer) and Dinesh Vijan (film-maker). That way, I have learnt to bifurcate things. There are also joint ventures such as Kedarnath, Sapna Didi, Raid (starring Ajay Devgn), and then there is another one with Luv and Ajay, which is in the Hum Aapke Hai Koun (1994) zone but in Luv Ranjan’s style. So, there are two films with Ajay and two with Akshay. Plus, I have also liked scripts, which are going to feature the current young stars.

Since you are producing so many films, how do you keep a tab on the quality?

It’s not just me as there are other creative people also involved in those films. In such cases, my main responsibility is marketing, which is done by my team. But the strategy to market films — more or less — remains the same. There are people who say that they want to do marketing differently, but I have realised that everyone has a fixed strategy. I have been part of films where they wanted to market films ‘differently’, but that just doesn’t work.

When you announced Mogul (a biopic on the late Gulshan Kumar), what kind of reactions did you get?

Not just industry people, even random people, whom I have never even met, have wished me luck. The kind of mass connect that my father had, is huge. In Vaishno Devi, J&K, my father’s trust has been running langars for years now, and countless people have eaten there. So, I am sure that all those people would want to know my father’s story. My father believed that even if one is doing any noble deed, neither should anybody find out about it, nor should any publicity be done. It’s completely opposite from the thoughts that a lot of people generally have.

Isn’t it going to be a very emotional journey for you?

Absolutely. My mother and I wonder how we are going to watch the film. Moreover, there is an emotional connection vis-à-vis me and my company (T-Series). Also, this is the 20th year of me handling the family business.

Given a choice, what would you rather be — a music magnate or a film producer?

Music has always been my bread and butter and it is in my blood. Films are something that my father always wanted to do so that’s an add-on but that doesn’t mean we aren’t concentrating on it; as everyone knows, we are doing it with full passion. But music will always be my first love.