click for larger view

We met with Manish Tiwary, director of 'Dil Dosti Etc', who has not only spoken to us about his forthcoming movie but also several questions concerning the film industry vis-à-vis the young generation. Excerpts of the interview:

How much of Dil Dosti Etc is based on your own experiences in the Delhi University?

The protagonists of Dil Dosti Etc are studying in Delhi University and live on the campus. Also, a dozen other supporting characters are part of the University. I think I know most of these characters in one way or another from my college days in Delhi. Although some incidents in the film are derived from my experience there, the plots are entirely fictional, that Pawan Sony (my co-writer) and I wrote for the film.

How do the protagonists of your film bring alive the contradictions between the new and the old?

click for larger view

I have used the themes of Sex and Politics to talk of the 'New' and the 'Old'. Apurv, played by Imaad Shah is a rich kid with a cosmopolitan culture who is looking for something meaningful in the mundane that surrounds him. And there is the ambitious Sanjay Mishra (Shreyas Talpade) from Bihar who is an outsider to Delhi, is laden with parental expectations, but has limited means to achieve his goals. They represent two Indias, and not just rich and poor, but ones with entirely different sets of value systems. Apurv's libertine indulgences in non-committal affairs speak of a break from the conservative past. Sanjay Mishra who is into college politics, on the other hand, works using conservative means.

Delhi University has an effervescent charm of its own (captured in Sarfarosh, Rang De Basanti)…share with us the freshness you have injected into the subject?

click for larger view

Going by the precedence set by Bollywood films, there will be oodles of newness in my film - a majority of Dil Dosti Etc is actually shot on campus of Delhi University, in the college, hostel, canteens, university roads, etc; apart from using twenty other locations in Delhi. Then there are a dozen or so supporting cast members who come from the dramatic societies of different colleges in the University. Of course, the 'freshness' will be best appreciated when the locations and actors will be seen in the context of the unfolding of the film's narrative.

How would you define the youth in India today?

A section of the youth now has both the time and money to indulge and can afford to be decadent. As anywhere else in the world they are consumerist, opportunity-hungry and sex-obsessed.

What do love or relationships mean to the new generation? Has it changed in last five years?

This is a problematic area. I wouldn't like to generalize for all. Also, I think five years is too short a period to comment on the change in the attitude of an entire generation. Again, love and relationship are huge subjects and subjective to be summed up in brief. Nonetheless, young people today certainly have more choices - in all sorts of ways.

Share with us a few memorable experiences during your student days?

Long bike rides from north campus to Priya theatre in Vasant Vihar to watch Hollywood films in front economy row and the anda-parathas at the chachi's dhaba at Hindu Rao Hospital.

As a filmmaker, what genres interest you the most?

A given film genre comes with a defined set of notions on the settings, emotional context, and tools that are used to make that film. What interests me more are unique stories and use of relevant forms to tell.

Among directors, who have influenced you most?

For the purpose of this interview, I shall mention a keen favourite: Satyajit Ray.

Five films that blew your mind?

Let me name one, the lesser seen, Ray's Postmaster (1961).

What can we expect from you in the future?

More films, I suppose.

Who are the next gen stars to watch out for?

From Dil Dosti Etc, the 'next gen' actors who show great promise are Imaad Shah and Ishitta Sharma. Both have great presence on the screen, precocious acting talent and an instinctive understanding of the medium of film.

Name a few path breaking films?

Vishal Bhardwaj's Omkara was a very satisfying screen adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello. Also, the experimentation with the 'form' (intertweaving of history and present, and camerawork) in Rang De Basanti (Rakeysh Mehra) worked well for me.

Would you ever make a Bollywood masala dhamaka with lavish sets, songs and dances?

If I were to deconstruct this, I would say all of this may stand true: that I will be making films in 'Bollywood', with sets (lavish, depending on the context, budget etc), songs and dances (already have some in Dil Dosti Etc), but knowing what 'Bollywood masala dhamaka with lavish sets, songs and dances' could stand for, the answer is no; I don't see myself being able to do that.

Any message from your film?

I don't think I have an explicit message to convey through Dil Dosti Etc. What I've attempted to do is to show slices from the lives of the youth of today.