SCALING NEW HEIGHTS

Sooraj Barjatya has moved away from the marriage formula in his latest release Uunchai. Suman Sharma talks to the reticent filmmaker about his change of pace

Sooraj Barjatya's movies are like much-loved wedding videos. You put them on wherever you're feeling low, run them from anywhere you like and they still keep you engaged and lift your spirits up. He mostly shot his films on grand sets, caring more for the ease and order of a closed set than the chaos of an outdoor shoot.

But he threw all his self-imposed restrictions out of the window while making Uunchai. The film, which starred Amitabh Bachchan, Boman Irani, Anupam Kher, Danny Denzongpa, Sarika, Neena Gupta and Parineeti Chopra, revolved around a group of 60-plus friends making a trek to the Everest Base Camp. It was marked by memorable performances and was well-liked by the family audience.

Excerpts from a tete-a-tete with the talented director, who took on a new challenge and succeeded.

You always make romantic family films with young actors. What inspired you to make Uunchai with older actors?

A writer came to me with a story in 2016, and its heading was "Death." When he read the story to me, I thought that this is what life is. At that time, I was busy writing a story with Salman Khan in mind. But then I realised I should make a film that is more personal to me. I made the film during COVID. I knew that this was not my style of story. I was in search of a good director who could make this film. All of a sudden, I realised that I wanted to make this film myself. There is no chiffon-clad heroine in Uunchai, there is no dance or drama.

But I wanted to write a story of courage. And I did not care whether the young crowd would come to see my film or not... I just had to make the film and I made it.

What was Amitabh Bachchan's reaction when he listened to this story?