Saiyaara, releasing in cinemas this Friday, introduces newcomers Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda, and is directed by Mohit Suri, the man behind romantic hits like Aashiqui 2 and Ek Villain. A t2 chat with Mohit.

In an era of cookie-cutter cinema, Saiyaara looks like a potential palate cleanser. It seems to have all that we have come to expect from a Mohit Suri film over the years. You have also not overmarketed the film, which is a departure from the norm. What made you decide to do that?

We haven’t tried to oversell or overmarket the film because it is not that kind of a film. It is a gimmick-free film. In the run-up to release, we have released one song every week, which is from the film and not a music video or anything such. Most of the songs are screenplay songs... they exist within the film and take its story forward. We came up with the teaser and trailer, in addition to the songs. We have no remixes, no recreations.

We have gone the classic way here, presenting Saiyaara in the way films were done in the traditional way earlier. I believe that if a film is honest, you don’t need to oversell it.

I am not being pompous. I know the reality of the market is very different post the pandemic. Most newcomers — even if they are industry kids from big families — have been launched on OTT. But the producers of Saiyaara were sure that this was a film meant for the theatres. It is a cinematic film that will make people go in with their hearts — they will laugh a bit, cry a bit, go through all the seasons of love....

I have grown up watching films produced by Yash Raj Films. I have watched Yashji’s (Chopra) love stories and Adi sir’s (Aditya Chopra) films and those influenced me in wanting to become a filmmaker. They have pretty much dominated the genre in India. So they know what sells best when it comes to matters of the heart.

Your films have always been known for their pure, soulful music. You have resisted the market forces that mostly mandate upselling a film with a remix or an item number. Saiyaara belongs to that thought too. How have you managed that all these years?

Actually, I did do it in my first film (Zeher, 2005). I released the remix of Woh lamhe (sung by Atif Aslam). At that time, it was a pathbreaking move, no one else had done it. In fact, when I remixed it and put it in the running title, everyone thought I had ruined the song because the original was a hardcore emotional number. But it worked and then everyone started doing it and then it wasn’t as cool any more.

Honestly, I am not against it, but Saiyaara is not that kind of a film. Each film has its own demand. There are films that entertain the viewer going into flash forwards and travelling to foreign countries. It does help the film sometimes... I am not against it. I have enjoyed many of those films myself. Saiyaara talks about a love that is very realistic. It required us to be honest to the writing.

Music has always driven your cinema. Your songs take the story forward, which is not the case in today’s times where songs are inserted randomly for effect and entertainment...

Yes, I don’t start shooting till the time I have all my songs in place. I don’t know how to do it otherwise. I think songs are a part of screenplay. I use them to convey situations and emotions. It is a very important part of my filmmaking process. There was a joke of a very senior filmmaker who kept coming to my sets every day and asking: ‘What are you shooting today?’ And every day, the answer would be: ‘Songs!’ (Laughs) I think four or five scenes can’t do what one song can achieve emotionally.

What spurred Saiyaara and how did your maiden association with Yash Raj Films happen?

I believe that you don’t make a film... things come together to get it made. I had grown tired of making thrillers and action films and after the pandemic, and even now, most people are only making larger-than-life action films. Everyone was only blowing up buildings, cars and helicopters and I was like: ‘When does this stop?!’

At that time, I happened to watch the documentary called The Romantics (based on the films in the romance genre made by YRF). I thought it was beautifully made and spoke about the need for romantic films made in times where the angry young man was the only thing Hindi cinema was talking about. That is when I decided to write Saiyaara, along with Sankalp Sadanah. We sat in a room without a producer, paying out of our pockets, not knowing whether the film will ever be made. In fact, a couple of very senior filmmakers told me that I was wasting my money and time because no producer was going to back a ‘youngster love story’ in today’s day and age.

But then I found out that Yash Raj Films was looking for love stories. I met Akshaye Widhwani (CEO of YRF) and Adi sir and once they heard the story, they told me: ‘Among all the films we have heard so far, this is the only film that we want to make’. It was a great moment and also felt like destiny had come full circle... getting inspired by The Romantics and writing Saiyaara... and even as a child, I watched Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and wanted to make love stories. To have the same people back me and my vision has been special.

You just said that you were discouraged from making Saiyaara by a few people because they felt no one would want to watch a love story with youngsters. But don’t young people form a sizeable demographic of the movie-going audience in India today?

They told me this right after the pandemic... things had become very different then. At that time, people were going into theatres only for mass entertainers.

Honestly, I don’t pretend to be a business or trade analyst. I don’t know how these things work. I think like the audience and I felt that I was missing watching a romantic film. I wanted to make this kind of a film because I felt nobody else was doing it.

I think that is how films should be made. You make them not with an agenda or with an eye on business, but because you believe in it and then somehow it has to find its own legs.

Were you always sure that you wanted newcomers for this film?

Honestly, by the time I was done with the script, I liked it so much that I thought I would make it with known faces. I did approach a few of them who are my friends and they also liked it. But when I went to YRF and threw in these big names, hoping that would help to sell my film better, they were the ones who turned around and said that while having big names would probably make the business teams happy, it would do disservice to my film. They suggested I make the film with unknown names because the script demanded them to be young. I asked Adi sir: ‘But who will put so much money on newcomers in this market?’ He said they would. He had the passion and vision to invest in a film which has been made no differently from any other big film.

What make Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda the right choice for their roles?

The moment I got into the YRF system, Adi sir told me I should meet Ahaan. He was supposed to do a film for them in the past, which eventually didn’t work out. I did see his auditions, but he was still not there for me. Adi sir suggested that I should hang out with Ahaan. I went out with that boy one night — all the while thinking that he is not what I was looking for in this film. I spent a couple of hours with him and during that time, some things went down that made me believe that he could play the guy my film needed. The minute he came out of job mode, the minute I told him to call me by my name and not address me as ‘sir’, I watched him come alive. Once that happened, I could see Krish in him.

Getting Aneet on board was a four-month process. We auditioned a lot of girls. But no one we saw seemed right for the role. We finally found Aneet thanks to Shanoo Sharma, the casting head at YRF. She groomed Ahaan for years and also found a brilliant talent like Aneet.

From whatever we have seen so far, this film seems to have a tortured protagonist, pretty much like what we saw in Rockstar and your own film Aashiqui 2. Would you agree?

The guys in Aashiqui 2 and Rockstar are quintessentially good boys. Saiyaara has a lead who is a quintessentially bad boy. It is a universal rule that bad boys attract good girls. The film explores that and asks what happens to these bad boys and gradually makes them heroes.

This year marks 25 years of Zeher and Kalyug, your first two films as director. What are the memories like?

Like it was yesterday! Your first film, your first love, your first kiss, you can never forget. It was in Goa on October 1. We were shooting with Udita (Goswami) and Emraan (Hashmi) for Zeher. It was a night shoot. I took my first shot and asked my aunt, who was handling production: ‘Why am I not feeling tense?’ I was only 22. I don’t think my wife (Udita) remembers it because for her, it was any other day. But for me, it was my first time.