(Clockwise from above) Akshay Kumar in a moment from Waqt, Akshay with Priyanka Chopra in a song sequence, and Amitabh Bachchan with director Vipul Shah on the sets

n We have already seen so many father-son films in Bollywood. Why did you decide to make another film on the same theme?

Classically, in the Indian film industry there have been three types of father-son films. One, about the generation gap between the two and the problems that result from that gap. Two, about sons discovering that they have been brought from orphanages and their fathers are not their own. And third, of course, the rich-boy-poor-girl story where there is a tiff between the father and the son.

But a father-son relationship is not just limited to that. For a father, the main worry is that the son?s upbringing has to be good so that he becomes a good human being. For a son, the father?s image cannot be broken and has to stay as the hero.

There are so many such areas that Bollywood hasn?t ever touched in a father-son relationship. Waqt is about that and a lot more.

n In your film, too, as is evident in the promos, there is a tiff between the father and the son. What is the cause?

That is the catch point of the story of Waqt. It is an unusual story of a father and a son. It is very, very real and believable. I can assure you that any father-son duo of any economic strata will be able to identify with the father and son in my film.

I haven?t gone through something like this in my own life but I could relate to the emotions. Some day I can have a similar issue with my son. The situation may be different but the pain that the father and son go through is always the same. And pain doesn?t always mean hurt ? sometimes, it?s enriching, also.

n Why did you go for the title Waqt when there is already such a classic by the same name?

Time is a very big factor in my film. Both the father and son have to achieve certain goals in a limited time frame. So I called my film Waqt ? A Race Against Time. Even my earlier film Aankhen had a title same as that of three hit films. I had first called it All The Best, but my distributors wanted a Hindi title. So, I went ahead with Aankhen.

n Has it become a superstition?

Not really. Both the titles, Aankhen and Waqt, suit the films and the scripts. That?s what matters. I?m not bothered by the fact that there have been films before with the same titles.

n Why did you go for the same Amitabh Bachchan-Akshay Kumar father-son pair which the audience has already seen in Ek Rishta?

To be honest, had Amitji not done Waqt, I wouldn?t have made the film. As for Akshay, he suits the part and looks like Amitji?s screen son. As for them having already come together as father-son in Ek Rishta, well, it doesn?t matter. This particular father-son relationship is different from anything seen before on Indian celluloid.

n Waqt will be Amitabh Bachchan?s next release after Black. How do you think people will react to him after the Bhansali film?

Amitji creates news with every film. What?s new about it? Black is, of course, a very exceptional film. And with Waqt coming after Black, his goodwill will only help my film. I don?t think people will compare his performances in the two films. And even if they do, it will be a comparison between Amitabh and Amitabh.

n What about Priyanka Chopra, who is being touted as the next big thing in Bollywood?

I had signed Priyanka after Hero. I didn?t even see Andaaz before casting her in my film. I always knew she had great potential and I am so happy that she is proving my belief right.

n You also get to direct your wife Shefali in Waqt. How was the experience?

I have directed her earlier in my first Gujarati film. So it wasn?t something totally new. On the sets we were not husband and wife. All these great and talented actors did not come to the sets to see a husband-wife relationship flourish.

n But did she fit the role of Amitabh Bachchan?s wife?

Her age was a worry all right. We first did a photo-shoot with her, Amitji and Akshay. Then we slept over the whole idea for 15 days and then, went ahead with it. We have already got a lot of positive feedback from the promos. It feels good to know that our decision has paid off.

n What is the latest on Aankhen being made in Hollywood?

Aankhen is certainly going to be made in Hollywood. But that particular chapter is being handled by the film?s producer Gaurang Joshi.