Nitesh was anxious to know how people would react to film
He’s hit the bullseye again, with Chhichhore crossing ₹150 crore at the box office. But filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari says he wasn’t worried about how much the Sushant Singh Rajput-Shraddha Kapoor starrer would earn. Instead, he’s happy about the message conveyed through it.
“More than being worried [about collections], I was anxious to know how people would react to the story. Because it is the deciding factor in the long run. And I’m so happy with all the love that Chhichhore is getting across the world,” he says.
As for the best compliment so far, he reveals, “I was watching the movie with the public to gauge the response. After the show got over, a woman walked up to me with her teenage son and told me in a choked voice, ‘Thank you for making this film. Ye bachcha bahut pressure leta hai’. There have been many compliments that touched me, but this one got me emotional.’’
In the film, Sushant’s character’s son tries to commit suicide because he fails in an exam. Nitesh, an IITian whose heart lay in filmmaking , was keen that people understand
Our attempt is to make sure the film reaches as many people as possible so that they benefit from it. NITESH TIWARI FILMMAKER
the importance of living. “It is quite overwhelming for Sajid (Nadiadwala, producer) sir and me to see that the film’s core message has resonated with people and brought a positive change in their approach towards life. Message trails on WhatsApp groups and social media are a testimony to this. So our attempt now is to make sure it reaches as many people as possible so that they benefit from it, in whichever way possible,” says the filmmaker, whose previous outing, Dangal (2016), remains the highest grossing Hindi film worldwide, earning over ₹2,000 crore.
His next project, he confirms, is an around ₹500crore adaptation of the epic Ramayana. “It’s your classic Ramayana, not a modern take. A lot of emotions are invested in it and we want to bring out the sentiments attached in their full glory, so that the Ramayana can be seen, the way it deserves to be, on the screen,” Nitesh adds.