'Dhadak 2' director reveals how Rohith Vemula influenced the film
What's the story
Shazia Iqbal's Dhadak 2, starring Siddhant Chaturvedi and Triptii Dimri, has been lauded for its bold exploration of caste discrimination. The film also pays tribute to Dalit student Rohith Vemula, who died by suicide in 2016 amid allegations of caste-based discrimination. In a recent interview with Mid-Day, Iqbal revealed that Vemula's story was integral to the film from its second draft.
Director's statement
'We were not distant from that incident'
Iqbal co-wrote Dhadak 2 with Rahul Badwelkar, and both were deeply affected by Vemula's story. She said, "Rohith's story was present from the second draft itself. Both Rahul and I had been moved by what happened to Rohith." "So, we were not distant from that incident. He has influenced our film. When we put the character [of Shekhar] in the film, we knew the kind of impact it would have."
Source material
Iqbal on adapting 'Pariyerum Perumal'
Dhadak 2 is an official adaptation of Mari Selvaraj's Tamil film Pariyerum Perumal (2018), which also dealt with caste discrimination. Iqbal was approached by Dharma Productions for the adaptation over three years ago. She said, "As a person coming from another marginalized community, I loved how strong Mari's voice was." "But the most important thing I thought was, 'Would I have myself in the film?' When I saw that scope, I was interested in making it."
Adaptation changes
Changes in Hindi adaptation
Iqbal made two key changes in her Hindi adaptation of Pariyerum Perumal. She wanted to give the female character more agency and change the setting from a rural area to a city. "The setting is rural in the original film. Our close friends told us that casteism doesn't happen in cities anymore. So, we took this core theme and reimagined the film [in a city]," she said.
Visuals defense
Why the sanitized look?
Dhadak 2 has been criticized for its visually sanitized look, especially in scenes involving Chaturvedi's character Neelesh's locality. Iqbal defended her decision, saying she follows Dogme 95, a filmmaking movement that advocates shooting in real locations without embellishments. "I'm glad you gave the example of Neelesh's basti because we shot in Bheem Nagar [in Bhopal], among the community," she said.