Vikram Vedha directors Pushkar-Gayatri reveal how Hrithik Roshan-Saif Ali Khan film is different from Tamil original

The directors of Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan’s Vikram Vedha--Pushkar and Gayatri--talk about the similarities and differences the film has with the Tamil original, which starred R Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi.

The Hindi remake of the 2017 Tamil hit Vikram Vedha will be released later this year. The Hindi version, also titled Vikram Vedha, sees Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan play the titular roles, taking over from Vijay Sethupathi and R Madhavan, respectively. The husband-wife filmmaker duo of Pushkar and Gayatri return to helm the remake as well. In an interaction with Hindustan Times, the couple spoke about how the film is shaping up and what will be different about it.

Hrithik Saif Vikram Vedha (Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan with Vikram Vedha directors Pushkar and Gayatri).

Vikram Vedha is the story of the cat and mouse game between Vikram, a cop, and Vedha, a gangster. The story is inspired from the popular Indian folk tale of Vikram-Betaal with the characters borrowing their names from them as well. When the remake was announced, many fans of the original were skeptical given the regional tone of the story and plot. Some of those concerns were assuaged by the fact that Pushkar-Gayatri, who directed the Tamil film, are returning for the Hindi version. However, many fans wondered if the remake would be watered down in any way.

Reacting to this, Pushkar says, “We know how to make films in a certain way, and we will stick to that only. I hope people don’t think of it as ‘Bollywoodised’ or anything. There has been no pressure from any quarters to do it in a certain way, let’s put it that way. There has been no pressure from the producers or distributors saying films here have to be made a certain way. Nobody has had that conversation with us.” Gayatri says the reason they were brought on board was to recreate the elements that made the original so successful. She adds, “They liked the film and they wanted us to make it the way we make it. We have not found any pressure from any side and we have done our best.”

Vikram Vedha 2017 (R Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi in a still from Vikram Vedha).

However, the filmmakers do admit that there is one key difference. The Bollywood remake is much larger in scale. The original film released in July 2017 to critical acclaim and was a box office success as well, making ₹60 crore on an ₹11 crore budget. As per some reports, the Hindi remake’s production costs have exceeded ₹175 crore. While there is no confirmation of the budget, most reports say it is in excess of ₹100 crore, which makes it nine times that of the Tamil original, at the least. Pushkar says, “The scale is obviously much bigger. And that gives us a lot more scope to do things. But other than that, I don’t think there is any push.”

The shoot of the film wrapped up earlier this month with Hrithik Roshan sharing pictures from the final day of the shoot on social media to mark the occasion. The film, which also stars Radhika Apte, Rohit Saraf,Yogita Bihani, and Sharib Hashmi, will release in theatres on September 30. The film marks the first project in Hindi for Pushkar-Gayatri, who recently made their OTT debut with the Amazon Prime Video series Suzhal: The Vortex.