He’s only directed two films before Gehraiyaan, but when it comes to exploring flawed people and complex relationships on screen with both feel and insight, few can do it better than Shakun Batra. The man behind films like Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu and Kapoor & Sons now touches upon infidelity (and much more) in his latest, starring Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday and Dhairya Karwa. With Gehraiyaan streaming on Amazon Prime Video this Friday, The Telegraph chatted with Shakun on what intrigues him so much about messy people and their messy equations.
What is it like being the man behind a film that’s garnered so much attention and that everyone wants to watch?
At first it was really exciting... and now I am getting very nervous! I am like, ‘Oh my God! People are really looking forward to this!’ So I better make sure that they don’t get disappointed. There are a lot of expectations from Gehraiyaan based on the material that people have seen so far. And they are making up their stories in their heads about what the film will be like (laughs). And I constantly keep thinking, ‘Is their story going to be in sync with what we have made?’ And at other times, I am like, ‘What the f***?!’ (Laughs) So ya, I am very kicked, but I am also very nervous.
Complexities in relationships, the messier aspects of life are always relatable. So it’s bound to resonate with a lot of people, isn’t it?
And that’s why we thought of making Gehraiyaan. I was quite done with films that had two people looking at each other with gooey eyes. I was like, ‘Come on! Get over it!’ (Rolls his eyes) That’s why we went in this direction, and I hope it resonates. Gehraiyaan is definitely messy! (Laughs)
What is it about complex relationships, like we even saw in Kapoor & Sons, that intrigues you?
I am going through a phase where I am fascinated with understanding why people make certain choices... what makes them do certain things, where do these choices come from... do they come from a deep, unattended place in you that you haven’t looked at? That’s what drives me right now. Maybe five years down the line, I will want to do something very simplistic. Maybe I will be in a different headspace.
But right now, this is what excites me and drives me... psychology, choices, complexities, needs and desires and what happens when they are not met, what do we do, how do we feel, where do we go, how do we resolve that.... I have felt like that in the last few years, and I wanted to explore the same kind of headspace in this film.
Are you cynical about love in its conventional sense?
An idealist would call me cynical, a cynic make call me a realist (smiles). Everyone goes through phases of idealism, realistic ideas and cynicism in life, and I don’t know where I am on that scale right now. I am definitely hopeful, but not an idealist (smiles). I am someone who likes looking at things closely sometimes, but definitely not in a cynical manner.
What specifically triggered the idea of Gehraiyaan?
Growing up, I had a very confined, straight moral compass. I did look at relationships in very clear black-and-white terms, and I made judgments on the relationships that I saw around me. I had my own fight with understanding infidelity, and it was only when I got into my mid-20s that I started to read and watch more movies, and it kind of normalised itself for me.
I really felt that if we could tell a story around this theme and tell it without the lens of judgment and that this film could do to somebody what other films have done to me — in terms of opening my lens, expanding my worldview and made me understand and empathise with the fact that everyone, at some level, is flawed and makes choices that may be questionable to others, and yet when we find ourselves in that situation, those choices seem absolutely real to us. That feeling helped me make Gehraiyaan.
Shakun Batra with Deepika Padukone on the sets of the film.
Is the majority of our audience evolved enough to watch a film like this without judgment? Or do you think film-makers tend to underestimate our audience even now?
Absolutely! I think we have created a lot of literature and films in the past around this theme. Look at Devdas, it’s complex... it’s not straight-up... because we have seen Devdas so many times now, we have now accepted it as a ‘film’. But that story was essentially written to showcase the complexities of humans and what they go through. Or even for that matter Lamhe, Silsila.... Look at Arth, look at Masoom.... We have done way more evolved storytelling, and I am just one of them on that path. I can’t take any credit because it’s already been done.
You make heartbreak look beautiful. What’s the key to doing that?
I think what we have done in the past is this overtly sentimental take on heartbreak, and maybe we have romanticised heartbreak a little too much. I like taking the mawkish sentimentality out of heartbreak and showing it for what it is, and that probably makes it more relatable. I am constantly trying to get to an authentic place with my storytelling, and if that makes my stories more relatable, then that’s great. Authenticity is what I really like to chase.
Ananya Panday has said that before she went in to meet you, she watched a lot of world cinema. Siddhant Chaturvedi went in prepped with a whole lot of notes. You look far from intimidating, but what is it about Shakun Batra that makes actors come on your set with certain expectations?
It’s just my specs... they give me an overtly intellectual look (laughs). Initially, I talked a lot about the films I watched and I thought that image would help me make films (smiles)… maybe it did, maybe it didn’t. My actors come in with a certain idea about me, but then they quickly realise that I love trashy cinema more than them (laughs). I wouldn’t actually call it trashy cinema because that’s what I grew up on, and which I thoroughly love watching even now.
Yes, it’s true that I love watching films from all over the world. Ananya did come in saying that she watched three Polish films before she met me, but when I asked her which ones, she couldn’t name them! (Laughs) So I still have to figure out whether she did watch them....
What serious image are you talking about? You are stuck with being Pappu in Pappu can’t dance saala from Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na!
That’s exactly what I am saying! (Laughs) Maybe the pretentious, intellectual side came in because I had to throw people off that image... they were like, ‘Is this guy going to be making films?’ So I was like, ‘I have to do something!’ Thankfully, it’s worked out. And then maybe one day I can throw away these glasses and everyone will still work with me (smiles).
What’s interesting is that you have an intimacy director on Gehraiyaan, one of the first for a Bollywood film...
You know, I was shit scared! Intimacy is an important aspect of this film and I wanted to treat it differently. I didn’t want to do it wrong. I looked at how it’s done in the West and I came across this concept of having an intimacy director. I thought of my friend Dar (Gai), who has directed quite a few music videos that I have loved, including Prateek Kuhad’s cold/ mess. So I requested her to be my collaborator on this.
Honestly, it was the best decision ever because first, I wanted to take a step towards building a safe place for actors to be in and where they can be vulnerable. Second, I wanted to shoot intimacy in a different way... more nuanced, layered, detailed, textured and do it for the right reasons. The intention never was to be scandalous or say that I am pushing the envelope here, so let’s just have a sex scene.... My idea for this always was that if we are going to do it, let’s do it right. Dar has contributed immensely to this film and I have learnt so much myself.
You are a ‘Woody, Wes and Wilder fan’. What is it about each of them that you admire as film-makers?
Woody Allen for just the kind of stories he makes and the kind of characters he brings on screen. Wes Anderson brought this kind of new palette to how movies look and feel. His control over his craft and his ability to tell stories in a whole new way visually. Billy Wilder worked within the studio system but had a very distinct voice and he’s a constant reminder about how it’s important for a film-maker to hold on to what you want to say.
