After making films like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Devdas and Black with established stars, Sanjay Leela Bhansali now teams up with two newcomers to 'rediscover' his own innocence in Saawariya.
The love story is the debut vehicle of two star kids - Rishi Kapoor's son Ranbir and Anil Kapoor's daughter Sonam.
"After Black, where I worked with established stars, I reached a point where I needed to go beyond the stars, to rediscover my own innocence with the help of new talent. Saawariya is about innocent love," says Bhansali. "
Talking about his new project, Bhansali said he couldn't afford to falter in Saawariya.
"I can't go wrong in Saawariya. It involves the career of two new talents. I feel Ranbir and Sonam can bring a new style of acting. Of course, they do have their parents' qualities."
Excerpts of the interview:
The casting of your new film has been under serious speculation for months now. Care to finally tell us about it?
Media persons wrote about the cast, not waiting for me to announce it. It had to be Ranbir and Sonam for
Saawariya
.
When I worked with Amitji (Amitabh Bachchan) in Black, I was fulfilling a dream. No director of our times will feel complete without working with him. Having experienced that high, I needed the challenge of moulding talent, shaping new actors into my own vision. Ranbir and Sonam have given me that liberty.
This is the first time you are working with absolutely new talent.
It is important to move away from expectations - your own and others. "Black" broke many rules. After Devdas people said it was hara-kiri for me to make a dark film. But it was a spontaneous decision.
Saawariya is again straight from the heart. And Sonam and Ranbir emerged from a completely natural instinct to cast the right faces for the two leads.
{{/usCountry}}Saawariya is again straight from the heart. And Sonam and Ranbir emerged from a completely natural instinct to cast the right faces for the two leads.
{{/usCountry}}How did you actually zero in on Ranbir and Sonam?
The kids came to assist me. Ranbir joined me two years ago on Black when he just returned from abroad. A little later Anil Kapoor called to say his daughter is back in India and wants to work only with me.
The first thing I noticed about them was that they were complete star material. I told them they were the kind of faces I'd like to put before the camera.
At that time Ranbir and Sonam said they weren't sure. Later they confessed they had come with the primary intention of being noticed and cast by me. It's a confession that melted my heart.