Tigmanshu Dhulia talks about shelved films with Irrfan, Sunny Deol
What's the story
Filmmaker Tigmanshu Dhulia recently opened up about two of his ambitious projects that were shelved despite being in production. Speaking to India Today, he recalled working on Killing of a Porn Filmmaker with Irrfan Khan and later starting the period film Ghulami with Sunny Deol, Sameera Reddy, and Khan. However, both projects were halted midway due to production issues.
Project challenges
'Killing of a Porn Filmmaker' was meant to star Khan
Dhulia revealed that he started working on Killing of a Porn Filmmaker immediately after the release of Charas.
He shared, "My third film, the day Charas released, the next day I started a film which was called Killing of a Porn Filmmaker."
"I started shooting, and we shot for seven to eight days. And then the producer kind of backed out. I was making that film with Irrfan."
Second project
'Ghulami' was led by Deol, Khan
Dhulia also spoke about Ghulami, which he started in 2005.
"In 2005, I started a film called Ghulami, which was based on the First War of Independence in 1857, with Sunny Deol, Sameera Reddy and Irrfan, and many actors from London."
"It was a period film. Horses, elephants, weapons, costumes, locations, sets, everything was made. After three days of shooting, the film stopped," he said.
Producer issues
Dhulia learned the hard way
The 59-year-old filmmaker admitted that working with an inexperienced producer led to hiccups along the way.
"I was stupid. I had a new producer, and he said, 'I had to get money from somewhere,' which did not come and then the film stopped. I wasted many years doing this kind of work," Dhulia confessed.
Revival plans
Will he revive 'Ghulami' now?
However, Dhulia hasn't given up on Ghulami.
When asked if he would revive the film, he said he still plans to make it but with a different cast.
"I don't get any actor who speaks that kind of language. Actors are also a problem here. Where do we have them?" he said.
Typecasting challenges
On being typecast as a filmmaker
Dhulia also spoke about why filmmakers find it difficult to break out of the kind of cinema they are typically known for.
He acknowledged that audiences and the industry expect a certain kind of film from him.
"Yes, they do. And it's very unfortunate. They will not let you blossom," he said, citing Bullett Raja as an example of his attempt to adopt a different aesthetic.
Industry insights
On the expectations from directors
Dhulia added that while typecasting is usually associated with actors, filmmakers also suffer from it.
"There are only one or two Hindi film directors who have made varied and versatile work. Vijay Anand's name should be on top of that list, and Raj Khosla," he shared.
Dhulia recently directed Ghamasaan, starring Pratik Gandhi and Arshad Warsi. It's streaming on ZEE5.