When you pick up a new story, it should give you sleepless nights: Aanand L Rai

Prashant Singh

By now, one thing that has become synonymous with Aanand L Rai is his uncomplicated reel world peppered with a variety of emotions, which reflects in his personality too. Probably, that’s why his films have always tugged at audiences’ heartstrings. But peel off that layer of ‘simple, relatable’ cinema, and you will see the film-maker is consistently breaking set patterns in his directorial ventures as well as projects that he backs as a producer or presenter.

“It’s the fun of filmmaking. When you pick up a story, it should give you sleepless nights. It’s important to feel a little nervous. There’s no fun if films don’t do this to you. At the same time, what keeps you moving ahead is the excitement of seeing that [world] on the big screen,” says Rai, who has been pushing the envelope with gems like Nil Battey Sannata (2015), Newton (2017) and now, Sohum Shah’s Tumbbad.

“You may feel that it’s a new genre for me, but when you see Tumbbad, you will realise that it is just an extension of me. It is definitely a scary film, but it scares you about greed. It has horror elements but I will call it an adult film for family viewing; adult since it is scary. Today, even our audience is ready to broaden their horizon to see a newer world. We are all prepared to welcome unique stories,” he says.

Calling Tumbbad a “very Indian commercial film with a global appeal”, Rai feels the film “somewhere redefines the genre of horror.”

“What makes me very proud of it is its originality. I have a strong feeling that this will open up new dimensions for horror in India,” says Rai even as his “mind space juggles with too many things these days.” And right at the top is Zero starring Shah Rukh Khan, with which he returns to direction after Tanu Weds Manu Returns (2015).

“It is an interestingly tough film, so I needed these threeand-a-half years. In fact, I have been quick. When you watch it, you may feel I should have taken another year. But since I am a very hardworking man, I will deliver it in time (laughs),” says Rai, who admits Shah Rukh has “spoilt” him as a film-maker. “In the process, I’ve also learnt many things. The best thing I have learnt from him is to be there – in the moment. Let’s see where it takes me. When you work with him, you realise why he has consistently been on top,” he concludes.

Our audience is ready to broaden their horizon...We are all prepared to welcome unique stories. AANAND L RAI FILMMAKER