'I am thankful to Paresh Rawal'

Boman Irani has turned in one brilliant performance after another. And his characters have been quite peculiar as well. From his earlier films like Darna Mana Hai, Munnabhai series and Main Hoon Na to this Friday's release, Fruit n Nut, Boman seems to know how to entertain.

Sitting in front of him for this interview, I found Boman to be quite the gentleman to talk to as well. In his friendly manner, Boman shared his nutty experiences on the sets of Fruit n Nut with Nithya Ramani.

The film incidentally, is Kunal Vijaykar's directorial debut, and also stars Cyrus Broacha, Dia Mirza and Mahesh Manjrekar.

What is Fruit n Nut about?

It is impossible to describe the film and even more impossible to act in it! The film is about four characters, whose stories run parallel.

I play an old man, who thinks he's the Maharaja of Bombay, and wants his land back. He is whimsical and doesn't know what he is saying. It was very confusing to act like a terrorist. He calls for two terrorists to knock off Cyrus (Broacha).

We have made a film that we enjoyed and want people to enjoy it too.


Image: A scene from Fruit n Nut

'I can't imagine making a film without Boman Irani'

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Farhan Akhtar, writer, filmmaker and actor, came to New York last week with his director-sister Zoya Akhtar for the screening of Luck by Chance at the I View Film festival.

"Film festivals are important as they often provide an opportunity to look at a film from a fresh perspective," the 35-year-old filmmaker said.

He readily admitted that when he worked on a project he did not think of making a film that catered to a special audience. "It is the story that should hold my attention," he said. "I don't tell myself, I am going to make a film with a message or this is going to be a socially relevant film. Whatever films I make, the mandate is that it should touch the audiences and engage them from the first scene."

Akhtar, the son of writers Javed Akhtar (Sholay and Deewar) and Honey Irani (Lamhe and many other films), has collaborated with his father on several projects. He chats with Arthur J Pais:

What are some of the challenges you have set for yourself in the Don sequel?

Even when I was writing the script for Don, I suspected it could lead to a sequel. I wanted to be faithful to the original Don [which Javed Akhtar wrote with Salim Khan] but in my film, the villain lived. I was amazed at the way people were fascinated by this villain. Of course, they were not endorsing what he did but they were so intrigued and fascinated by him that they wanted so see more of him.

In the first film I felt the obligation to be faithful to the original Don to a great extent. I kept telling myself while making the first Don: don't try to be very smart. But now I feel I am free, and this is going to be my baby. At the same I know the audiences are expected many surprising twists in the sequel. One of my challenges is to know that the audiences are waiting for the big surprises and give them something they could not have imagined. It is not going to be easy but I feel it can be done.


Image: Boman Irani, director Tarun Mansukhani, Farhan Akhtar and John Abraham