00:00Hello ma'am, welcome to Anas and congratulations for Daira, that's about to raise on 18th of September.
00:04Two powerhouse performers in the film, Prisirat sir and Kareena ma'am.
00:09If you could help me with regards to the germ of the film, how did you get the idea and
00:13then how eventually you build the entire world around it?
00:16Actually the idea was sent my way by Jungli Pictures back in 2020.
00:21I still remember where I was, I was at my village home and there was a lockdown because of Covid.
00:28And it was a story written over few pages and yet it grabbed me because the issues that it talks
00:40about are so prevalent.
00:44And we even Jungli Pictures and me, we both knew that I will be making Sam Bahadur next.
00:54And we were okay to make it after four years because we knew that it's going to not get outdated
01:00even after four years, unfortunately.
01:04So, yeah.
01:06Okay, okay. And with regards to the lead characters in the film, Kareena ma'am and Prisiraj ma'am, if
01:12you could help me understand the world that these two characters come from.
01:15Because they are at the opposite end of the spectrum in terms of the pursuit for justice or the with
01:19justice system.
01:20They are actually not at the opposite ends of the spectrum.
01:22They are part of the same spectrum.
01:24They are part of the same world of law enforcement and the police force.
01:29It is circumstances that put them on opposite sides of an incident and how they navigate that and yet remain
01:40within boundaries which keep changing depending on what is going on at that particular time.
01:48So, sometimes like the line of law can entrap you, sometimes it can show you the way, right?
01:56And that's what they are navigating through Daira.
01:59Okay, okay. And with regards to Prisiraj sir's character, the way he deals with the entire incident, the way he
02:08looks at the overall case.
02:09If you could help me understand his view point of view…
02:12Then why don't I tell you the whole film, right?
02:16No, just the broader perspective in terms of how he is as a police officer.
02:23Well, they are both righteous, let's put it this way.
02:30But Kareena's officer, Ajuni, she will uphold her righteousness to a fault.
02:37Okay. And Raman who is Prithvi's character is also righteous but he is fierce as well.
02:47So, sometimes his ferocity overtakes his righteousness and that's the difference between the two.
02:53Okay, okay. And while you are working on this film, designing the small little nuances of the characters or the
02:58story overall,
02:59did it at any point it happened to you or it occurred to you that law, it can translate very
03:06differently in different set of situations?
03:08Did it ever happen? Something of that sort of realization?
03:10It happens every day in life, right? The law can be interpreted and manipulated and twisted and adhered to and
03:20people do all of it all the time.
03:22And that is actually what is the fulcrum of Daira. Someone can completely toe the line of the law and
03:33stay within its boundaries.
03:35And you can also completely manipulate the loopholes in the law and yet stay within its boundaries. Both are possible.
03:42That's what Daira is talking about.
03:44And with regards to the concept of justice, do you think it is a man-made concept or it is
03:50something which is already prevalent in nature?
03:54Even if it was already prevalent, it is man-made. The Manu Smriti has been written by somebody and it
04:00has been formulated by somebody.
04:01So our principles of justice actually are very, very ancient. They have also evolved, they are also dynamic. But principles
04:12of justice or the idea of justice is very relative.
04:16What is justice for you can be a crime for me or injustice for me, right? And so as in
04:25with everything that is human, it is not black or white.
04:28It is about the person's interpretation depending on their circumstances.
04:33And what is your idea of justice in a broader sense?
04:36In a broader sense, it's justice when it's just for all. If it is just for a majority, if it
04:43is just for a society, it's justice.
04:47If it is justice for one and injustice for a majority, then it's not justice. I mean ideally that's what
04:55justice aspires to be.
04:56But in a society like India wherein there are so many people, we are the most populous country right now,
05:00having the same yardstick for justice for the entire population,
05:06is it possible given that there are different interests at play of different communities, of different people, different cultures?
05:11But why should justice be colored by culture and community? Justice should be justice, right? It should be independent of
05:18any other parameter.
05:21Okay, okay. And regards to the production, the logistics of the film, if you could help me understand the color
05:27palette, the look and feel of the film, the aesthetics, what lenses were used or the cameras?
05:32Camera, I don't know what we use, but I know we were shooting on anamorphic lenses. The color palette fluctuates
05:41between grey because that's the world of Daira and really earthy browns because that's the world of the police.
05:53The landscape is region neutral because I have not set Daira in North India or South India or Eastern India
06:01or Western India, it could be anywhere in India.
06:03And so locations are very, very ambiguous. And so was the cast actually. The cast is actually quite a combination
06:16of people from different regions in our country.
06:19Okay. Which for me has actually been a first because normally my films have been very steadfastly set in a
06:26particular region or a particular town or a particular state.
06:30So the dichotomy here as with everything else that is in Daira is that you want it to, it needs
06:37to be authentic for you to be able to believe that yes, this is true.
06:40And yet there is an element of fictional in it because it's not one particular city, one particular state and
06:48yet you need to maintain authenticity.
06:51So trying to achieve that was a challenge, but we have a fantastic team behind Daira, whether it's our production
07:00design, costume, cinematography, casting, everybody and our great ensemble cast.
07:05They really put this together and brought it to life. And what I really like about your storytelling is that
07:11the human relationships or the dynamics, they drive the story forward.
07:15Be it Tanwar, be it Razi, Daira of course. I want to know about the fuel behind such voice as
07:23a director. What is it that you read, consume literature, art, music in your leisure time?
07:27Well, the fuel primarily actually is life. It's the story that from where the film comes, that is the first
07:35and foremost driving force.
07:37Apart from that, I do consume a lot more nonfiction than fiction. I have studied sociology as my graduation subject.
07:46So there is a sense of a radar which is open to what is going on in your society and
07:52your world. Apart from that, I think it's just a general awareness in the world that you live in.
07:59And trying to constantly be aware of it and stay in tune with it and keep abreast of what is
08:05going on. That's all.
08:07Okay. And you mentioned that you consume nonfiction a bit more than fiction. I have always been fascinated with this
08:14one thing if consuming more of nonfiction makes a person cynical.
08:19Because fiction is everything, you know, rosy, you look at the world through rosy eyes, you know, rose turned glasses.
08:24But when it comes to nonfiction, its reality can be as dark as possible. Does it make you cynical on
08:29a humor level somewhere?
08:29No, I think it keeps me real. Does it disappoint me and depress me from time to time? Of course
08:38it does. But it also keeps you real.
08:41Yes, it's not like I don't consume fiction. I do. Sometimes I do want to escape into a fantasy or
08:47a sci-fi adventure or a romance. I do.
08:52But I think to feed the mind, I go towards nonfiction.
08:58Okay. And we spoke about the fuel behind the driving force of your stories. Now I want to know if
09:04you are a person who likes to experience emotions on a surface level.
09:07Or you want an emotion to reduce you to the atoms and then derive something from it.
09:12What do you think? Do you think anything in my film is at a surface level?
09:19And then how do you deal with it? Because actors, they can get in and out of any emotion. But
09:23for a storyteller, to sit with the emotion, to go through that and then come out of it.
09:26No, I have actually experienced actors who if they've had to break down in a scene, and they have broken
09:35down, and I have called cut, they have not stopped crying.
09:40They have continued to break down till they have relieved their emotional cycle completely. It has happened on several of
09:48my films. And at that point, even though I'm completely objective and unemotional as a filmmaker on set, I've only
09:59wanted to go and hold my actor.
10:01Because then the human being in you takes over. So I don't think any cinema, whether it is based on
10:09true life or it is fiction, you can't go through it without investing emotionally. You can't.
10:16It will show up in the director's work, it will show up in the actor's work. You can't. I don't
10:21think anybody does.
10:22Okay. And I want to talk about one of my favorite films of yours, which is Talwar. Now I'm with
10:29the storyteller, the filmmaker, that you know, it gives equal weightage to every party involved.
10:33But there is a certain section of audience that believes that the film favors the parent side a little more.
10:38Do you think, is it because of Irfan sir, because his performance was very powerful and that could drive the
10:43attention of the audience more towards the parent side?
10:45Irfan sir's performance has convinced you. Okay. But the facts are the facts and the facts are what have been
10:55depicted in the film.
10:56So if the facts look like they are veering more towards the in favor of the parents, that was the
11:02reality.
11:03It's just that Irfan sir as an actor and a performer convinced you a little more, but he convinced you
11:09with what? With the facts that he had.
11:11And the facts were as they were in life, which is why the Talwar family then got exonerated in the
11:16High Court.
11:18Talwar didn't create that fiction. That happened. Absolutely. Yeah.
11:22And for my last question, I really wanted to ask that, you know, sharing the same roof with Gulzar sir,
11:28being his daughter.
11:30Does it ever happen that I'm living with Mr. Gulzar or you're like, it's a normal day for you?
11:35Of course, I don't live with him. I live with my husband. I'm married and live in a different home.
11:39Like his daughter. No. So I'll tell you, both my parents have been huge stars in their own right and
11:48are immensely famous personalities.
11:50But at home, they have always been very, very grounded, very, very normal. And I have had a very normal
11:58upbringing.
11:59So my mother has scolded me like my mother, like any normal mother. I have got thappard also from her.
12:04My father has pampered me and come in the way of my mother disciplining me like all mothers and fathers
12:09do.
12:10So when you're raised with that and you're brought up with that, you don't see their public persona. That doesn't
12:18come in the way.
12:19Yes. When every time somebody comes and tells me, oh, I'm such a fan of your father or I would
12:25do anything to just touch your father's feet.
12:27Oh, I happened to meet your father and it was the best moment in my life. I'm not surprised because
12:34I'm aware of the effect my parents have on people.
12:42And I'm grateful for it. I respect that tremendously. But do I get that sense of awe with them? No,
12:49because for me, they are my mother and my father.
12:52Okay. And I'm tempted to ask one last question. As an artist, as a storyteller, are you chasing to establish
12:58a legacy of your own or you just want to tell your story and then step aside and leave the
13:04world once it comes to that?
13:05You can't guarantee a legacy. You can't control it either. All you can do is just keep doing your work.
13:13And that's what I'm doing. That a legacy is being formed or is being built.
13:19I don't even look back to see because I just feel I've finished my last film. I'm on my next
13:25film. I'll probably start working on my next film.
13:27One doesn't look at it with such binoculars either towards the future or with lenses into the past because I
13:36think that happens when you feel, okay, your professional life has come to a halt now.
13:40Then you have time to process these things. I don't think I'm there yet. But yes, for as long as
13:47I can, I want to continue to make the films that I believe in and the films that are true
13:56to my sensibility, are true to my moral compass.
14:03I till now have not been asked to or have had to compromise on that. And that's all I ask
14:10for.
14:11That I will make it, but don't make me compromise on my ethics, my sensibility, my morality.
14:17And how's your relationship with chaos as a storyteller?
14:21Chaos has to be your best friend because there is no film set without chaos. But the good part is
14:27that we know how to overcome it as a team. And that's all that matters.
14:32Okay, perfect. So with that we have reached the end of this conversation. If there's anything that I may have
14:36missed asking or something that you would have loved to talk about, so please feel free.
14:38No, I just hope that everybody enjoys watching Daira as much as they've enjoyed watching the trailer. I hope it
14:46fulfills all the emotions that the trailer has left incomplete and that's all.
14:52Okay, perfect. So on that note, thank you so much and I wish you all the best for Daira.
14:55Thank you. Thank you so much.
