Every film is like a chapter, says Aanand L Rai
In the decade since he made his Bollywood debut with Strangers (2007), film-maker Aanand L Rai has witnessed an equal number of ups and downs. However, the filmmaker, who has been a part of over half-a-dozen movies as a director or a producer, feels that it’s all part of life.
“You have to learn equally from your failures and successes,” he says, adding, “One should always keep in mind that these things are just like chapters in your life. I feel, every film is also like a chapter, since it surely teaches you something — no matter if the film becomes successful or not.”
Rai, who has box-office hits such as the Tanu Weds Manu films and Raanjhanaa (2013) to his credit, says the idea should be to “not get bothered by success and start changing things around you”. He says, “Don’t get affected and keep learning, because if you get affected by success, you will feel totally out of place when you don’t get it.”
Rai is considered one of the most calm and sought after film-makers in the Hindi film industry right now. What’s his mantra? “You have to realise that there are people who want to work with you and then there are a lot of people whom you want to work with. So, the number of people on either side keeps changing. But the only thing that remains constant that one has to understand is that you have to learn with every film,” says the Shubh Mangal Saavdhan producer.
Rai is currently busy working on his next project, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma, which will be released around Christmas 2018.