What is The Dirty Picture about?
It shows the underbelly of the film industry in the ’80s. It’s about the life of a woman. I see it as a feminist film. And it’s written by a man.
Why do you call it feminist?
Vidya Balan’s character in Dirty Picture is a woman who threatens the male-dominated industry by revelling in her sexuality. She’s no victim, she knows what she’s doing.
Will it shock audiences?
It’s a brave film. Vidya Balan is a sex symbol. Emraan Hashmi is out of his comfort zone. The humour can be discomfiting but isn’t crass.
You have played with the era in terms of the art direction and the costumes.
I love the ’80s, the bling era, era of the video.
Why branch out from TV to film production?
Soaps started losing viewership to other programme formats. I didn’t want to go from being the leader to becoming just a player.
Why two different production divisions?
ALT is for brave, under Rs 20 crore films like LSD and Shor In The City. Balaji Motion Pictures makes bigger films like Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai (OUATIM). It’s like Disney and Pixar.
How is film production different from TV?
Film lets you be more niche. TV doesn’t, you have to play the field, tell mainstream stories.
How does your own approach as a producer differ for films as against TV?
I made TV purely by instinct. Most soaps were formulated either on some emotion I’d internalised or an article I read. In films, creative people bring concepts and I pick the ones that click.
What clicked with projects you picked up?
I liked Shor In The City’s black humour. Ragini MMS was a date movie with a horror element. I liked the idea of voyeurism in LSD.
What’s coming up next?
We are making sequels to ouatim and Kya Kool Hain Hum. Shootout At Wadala is in the offing. At alt, we’re making Rock The Shaadi. It is a combination of DDLJ and zombie film.
