Actor-director partnerships: Recreating cinematic charisma

These hit pairs are reuniting on films in the hope of recreating the charm

Time and again, successful actor-director pairs have churned out hits at the box office. This year, too, several announcements have already been made that will once again see popular pairs collaborate.

Actor Salman Khan is collaborating with filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali for his forthcoming film. (Photos/Yogen Shah)

Film-maker Sanjay Leela Bhansali has announced Inshallah with actor Salman Khan and the two are reuniting after 20 years since Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Actor Taapsee Pannu and film-maker Anurag Kashyap, who teamed up for Manmarziyaan (2018), will shoot for a supernatural thriller directed by Kashyap, who is also producing Saand Ki Aankh, co-starring Taapsee. Actors Varun Dhawan and Shraddha Kapoor have teamed up with choreographer-director Remo D’souza for Street Dancer 3D post ABCD 2 (2015). After Aashiqui 2 (2013), actor Aditya Roy Kapur is collaborating with film-maker Mohit Suri on Malang. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra is reuniting with Farhan Akhtar in Toofan post Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013).

Actors Varun Dhawan and Shraddha Kapoor are starring in choreographer-director Remo D’souza’s film Street Dancer 3D

Comfort level works

Sharing the same opinion, Remo says, “It helps if the actor and director know each other and their strengths.”

Actor Taapsee Pannu will shoot for Anurag Kashyap’s supernatural thriller.

Some also opine that film-making requires teamwork. “In cinema’s history, you’ll see people coming together more than once not necessarily because they’ve created something successful but due to the fact that they’ve enjoyed working with each other,” says Mehra.

Trade analyst Joginder Tuteja, however, differs. “Audience is concerned with the end product rather than the actor-director camaraderie. These combinations work only if they’ve delivered hit films in the past,” he opines.

But what about the audiences’ expectations from these hit partnerships? Mehra says, “Every time I start a new film, I treat it like my first film as I work much harder to do justice to the script.”

Taapsee feels that just because an actor and a director have worked previously “doesn’t make film’s marketing or promotions simpler”.

Actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar will be reuniting with Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra for the latter’s directorial venture, Toofan.

Do these pairs reflect numbers?

Bhushan Kumar feels every actor and director have their brand value with the audience and hence, “it benefits the promotions if you have an actor-director combination that has been successful in the past”.

Actor Aditya Roy Kapur is working in Malang, directed by Mohit Suri

On whether it has any effect on the box office, Taapsee feels that a good opening is based on the trailer and the star value. Remo agrees that “actor-director partnerships help get a decent opening”.

However, Joginder asserts that “the partnership must come up with a recall value”, Mehra says, it all “depends on the story and people involved in the film”.

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