Two failures, Seesha and Deewanapan, don't seem to have deterred director Ashu Trikha, who has come up with the unconventional film Alag. The 'superhero' film released just a week before Krrish.
But in conversation with Patcy N, the director says his film should not be compared or clubbed with the Hrithik Roshan movie, just as two love stories should not be compared.
Why did you think of Alag? As such, science fiction doesn't really work in India.
Why not? I can give you examples where science fiction did work: Mr India was a huge hit, then there was Koi... Mil Gaya. I think if you don't use too much technical jargon, just tell the story in a common man's language and if the communication is clear, then it can connect with people.
I had a story which was different and wonderful compared to the normal commercial movie; then why not try it out? I made two earlier movies which did not do well, and people said why not make something different. If I again get a story of this kind, I will definitely try again. Eventually, a film is all about telling a story.
I have a friend, Tagore Almeida, who was working with Disney in Dubai. He narrated this plot to me. I found the concept strange, but I liked it. I started working around it, and slowly the script evolved. My dialogue writer told me, 'The story is so unique and different, why not call it Alag?' That's how it got its name.
Review: Alag lives up to it's name
How did you film the special effects scenes?
It's a 123-minute movie and there are 50 minutes of special effects, out of which 20 minutes are during the climax. There is one scene where we are showing hundreds of butterflies, but they are all computer generated. Then there are special effects where the audience should know they are special effects, so they are done in a different way.
But a movie doesn't work because of the effects. It's a superhero film, but you won't find the hero flying from one end to another. It is not a Spider-Man and Superman kind of a movie. It is Tejas Rastogi's story, who is completely human. But he is different.
Bollywood is full of superheroes
Is Alag a small or a medium budget film?
It's a correct budget film. Every single film demands a specific amount of money. But sometimes, for a normal storyline, you end up taking a huge starcast, and spend lavishly on sets, etc, and then you don't recover money. And sometimes you need lots of money to spend on a project which requires huge sets and special effects, but you don't have that budget so you end up spending less, and making the movie look tacky -- again the movie won't do well.
But if you have a correctly budgeted movie then you can make a perfect movie; and in this case we had a correct budget. We always thought that we would go to people with the story and characters, instead of approaching them with the actors. We can manipulate the actors, but not the movie's characters.
Won't the special effects look tacky if they are done cheaply?
It is not the money that makes special effects look tacky, it is the thought. If you have a lot of money but don't know how to implement it, then it is useless. Special effects are a combination of man and machine.
Alag released a week before Krrish, which is also a special effect-driven film. Do you think people will take Alag seriously, given Krrish is obviously a bigger film with potentially better effects?
How can you make a statement like this? I am not in a position to say that my film is better as both the movies have still not released. Let the audience decide. I know Akshay's first movie was a flop and Hrithik Roshan is a big star but jisse dekhna hai woh dekhne aayenge jisse nahi aana hai woh nahi aayega (people who want to watch will watch, those who don't want to watch will not watch). But I am getting positive indications. Initially distributors wanted just 10 prints and now they want 28 prints, which is good.
Special section: Showcasing Krrish
My movie is not about a superhero but about a superhuman. His whole desire is to be accepted and to be normal. Nowadays, there are special effects in every movie from Fanaa to Phir Hera Pheri. And I don't know why people are comparing these two films (Krrish and Alag). When five love stories are released together, nobody compares them, but just two superhero movies and people are comparing...
How did you make the transition from special effects man to director?
The natural transition for any creative person is to take control. I am in the industry for the last 28 years. I am a qualified engineer, but wanted to work in films since I was a kid. My pact with my father was that I would continue studying but he should not stop me from assisting in movies. I was doing commercials, music albums, special effects, and learnt about camera, lights, everything. Eventually, this was what I had to do.
Is it true your film is based on the Hollywood film Powder?
No. I have not seen it.
How did you get Subi Samuel to produce it?
Subi and I are friends for seven years now. We would meet up and talk about movies. I would tell him about different story ideas. When I told him about Alag, he said he wanted to produce it. I was shocked, but then Subi convinced me that I should do this movie.
How did you convince Akshay Kapoor to shave his body?
We did auditions for Tejas Rastogi's role; we saw about 20 actors. But Akshay suited the bill. He was okay with the idea of shaving his body, head and chopping his eyebrows, as that was the precondition. We had three months of workshops before we started the shoot. We gave him the script and asked him to work on it. He has done a great job.
How was it working with Dia Mirza?
Brilliant! I have worked with her earlier also. She has changed a lot. She has reduced a lot of weight too. First, she was a director's actress. She would do what the director says. Now, with experience, she analyses things and tries to understand the subject.
So what's next for you now?
I'm planning a sequel to Alag. Chapter One was introduction of the character. Chapter Two will be more of a children's film.
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