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EXCLUSIVE: Meghna Gulzar on Raazi: Vicky Kaushal is an important anchor in Alia Bhatt's story
Starring Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal in titular roles, Raazi is about a young woman named Sehmat who is sent to Pakistan on a mission to spy on the country for her motherland India. We got in touch with director Meghna Gulzar to know more about Raazi.
Raazi is based on Harinder Sikka’s book Calling Sehmat, a fictionalised take on the real story of an Indian woman who married a Pakistani man to spy for India. Alia Bhatt plays Sehmat and Vicky Kaushal is seen as Iqbal (Sehmat's husband) in the film. Alia is known for her method acting and getting into the skin of the character. In Raazi's trailer, Alia has delivered a power-packed performance.
We got in touch with the director Meghna Gulzar and asked was Alia the first choice for the film? On this, she told us, "Alia was the only choice and I wouldn't have made the film without her. She knows that also and I told her before I had the script in the hand. She has told in many interviews that this is the first time that she had yes to a film without a script. I just met her and gave a narration for roughly around 10 mins. I was sure if she isn't going to be a part of it, then it would have been difficult for me to even make the film."
How did Vicky come onboard for the film? "Vicky was the only name that we had thought of. We met him and gave him a narration. Then, we had a test of Alia and Vicky together. It all happened very organically. Primarily it's about Alia's character's journey, but that doesn't deny the part that Vicky hasn't played in the film. If there's no husband, then she can't get married and go to Pakistan. He is an important anchor in her story. But, it's her film - to have an actor who understands and appreciates the film and gives himself fully - Vicky is such an actor," said the director.
Was she expecting such a great response to Raazi's trailer? On this, she said, "No, to be very honest, it's very overwhelming. There is no way to predict these things and practically you have bee living with this subject for two years from the time you started writing to shooting it till its completion. The objectivity becomes rare and your vision is myopic. There's no way to predict to how the content you put out is going to be received. You get an idea when you start putting things together and start showing to a few people but those are also connected to the film, so you really if it's the emotional bias that's playing up. But, this is complete validation from the people who are not connected to the film. It's every encouraging and now, I'm frightened because you know the expectations are high and it's going to be a scary month."
The film is jointly produced by Junglee Pictures and Dharma Productions. Shishir Sharma and Jaideep Ahlawat co-star. The film is scheduled for release on May 11.
