Mehra’s next is a salute to today’s generation

After “Mere

Pyare

Prime Minister”, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra has his eyes set on telling a father-son story, comparing two generations. He says it’s a salute to the new generation that is grappling with pressures of all kinds. “I have started work on my next. It’s untitled right now, but its script is ready and we are casting,” Mehra said.

What is it about? “It’s a salute to the generation of today. What I have seen around me is that today’s generation is far more accomplished, and why not. It’s like a comparison of two generations, but it’s not so simple,” said the director, known for movies like “Rang De Basanti” and “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag”.

Reflecting on the thought behind the film, Mehra said: “I think the world we have given to the youth today, they deserve better. We have given them anxiety, panic attacks, depression, attention deficiency syndromes. These things never existed, but we have created these things for the generation of to- day, and are putting so much pressure on them. There’s peer pressure, competition pressure, performance pressure, pressure of structuring their life... ‘At 18, you will pass college, at 22 you will do the senior college, at 23 you get your first job, at 26 you do something else... At 30 you will get a house... If you don’t take a car by then, how will they feel... All that... And so, I wanted to tell a story around it in my own way.”

In a nutshell, “it’s a father-son story in a unique setup”, he explained, adding that he is currently meeting people for the project and gauging if the response is good.