Rajan Ramgopal Verma on his Hindi debut Jhaad Phoonk: Horror is the hero of the film if it is well made and gives the right message

UP-based writer and actor-turned-director Rajan Ramgopal Verma, known for his work in Gujarati cinema, recently made his Hindi film debut with film Jhaad Phoonk

Uttar Pradesh-based writer and actor-turned-director Rajan Ramgopal Verma, known for his work in Gujarati cinema, recently made his Hindi film debut with OTT feature film Jhaad Phoonk, which he shot entirely in Uttarakhand. He says the film is inspired by his childhood and the growing-up years he spent in his hometown, Aligarh.

Filmaker Rajan Ramgopal Verma

“I grew up watching this jhaad-phoonk in my birthplace and the nearby region. It is prevalent all over but mainly in UP-Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal etc. In my childhood, it happened to me too when I was taken to someone to ward off evils. The stem of faith and superstition in Jhaad Phoonk is from my real-life experiences,” he says.

The idea kept cooking in his mind for years, and on the back end, he kept working on it and developed the script.

About the concept, he says, “It’s all about belief but practically a superstition – be it taking a different path jab billi rasta kaatti hai ya neem ki jhaad se bimari jhadwana! The fact is that you need a doctor when there is an illness, but in faith, people do such things. They manifest that their belief will cure them. So, dono vishwas aur andhvishwas humare andar rehta hai.”

“I wanted to make a horror film but not just with a ghost and some supernatural things happening around. I want to play around fear. The fact is that horror as a subject is the hero of the film if it is well made and gives the right message. Some may ask, when I don’t believe in superstition, why do I have a ghost in the film? So, my reply is: In the Ramayana, to give a message of good over evil, there has to be Lord Ram and Ravana. I am not questioning the supernatural forces but highlighting the things that happen around it!”

The film stars Yashpal Sharma, Padmini Kolhapure, Sumbul Touqeer Khan, Harsh Rajput and Apratim Singh in prominent roles.

Shooting in Uttar Pradesh was always on his mind, but the script's requirement took him to Uttarakhand. “The weather gave me the backdrop I wanted, and the kind of isolated bungalow I wanted to give that eerie feel, I got deep inside a forest in Dehradun. However, I have a UP-based subject for Uttar Pradesh and it’s a big project, and I will surely shoot here. Aligarh will also figure in it.”

Since 2015, he has dabbled in acting, where he played the role of Ajmal Kasab in Ashok Chakra (2015) and acted in Zindagi 50:50 (2013) and My Friend Ganesha before turning to direction.

Interestingly, he has made four Gujarati films, and one is on the floors. “I was in ad film making, and when I decided to get into direction, I wrote the script with Bunty Rathod. I got a producer, but he wanted to make it in Gujarati. Initially, I was reluctant but then decided to go ahead, and Jessu Joordaar (2021) became a blockbuster. Now, I am very comfortable with Gujarati. My film Ghanghoor is also complete.”