Gadar 2 director Anil Sharma tells his critics why the film is being loved by the masses

Nonika Singh

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Critics be damned. As Gadar 2 is literally creating gadar on the box office, director Anil Sharma is a in state of total bliss. Upfront and candid, he neither minces words nor lets harsh reviews dampen his enthusiasm. For, the more the critics hated his film, it seems the more the masses loved it.

As the film breaches the elusive Rs 500 crore border, he might profess that ‘nindak nere raakhiye’ (keep your critics close to you) for they help you evolve, he knows too well at this stage what critics say or don’t say matters little.

First things first. To all those who allege Gadar 2 is a launch-pad for his son Utkarsh Sharma, he shoots back, “So what if it is? All fathers support their children, if I did it, what’s wrong with it.” Moreover, he reinstates how it was Utkarsh who played Tara Singh’s son Jeete 22 years back in Gadar and has created a history of sorts. “For, it’s rare that the child actor reprises the same adult character two decades later.”

As for backing 65-year-old Sunny Deol, the answer is simple, “Who else but Sunny? Gadar is quintessentially a story of Tara Singh, Sakina and Jeete.” Sunny, in fact, has been a part of many of his films such as Singh Saab The Great. He says, “Sunny truly gets into his part. He keeps discussing the story and his character till he immerses himself completely. And then he cries, shouts, is angry of his volition and it’s near impossible to make him snap out of the character.”

As audiences are going ga ga over Sunny’s power-packed performance, even comparing him to Thor, we wonder if he had the Marvel hero on his mind? “Not at all. I am a dehati banda. All I know is that in villages when men are enraged they pick up hathodas (hammer) to fight.”

But yes, in Tara Singh he does see a superhero of Indian origin. While critics may not have been able to fathom why the film has set the box office on fire, he has a ready answer, “When a film is a genuine hit as Gadar: Ek Prem Katha was back in 2001, there is nostalgic excitement among viewers to meet the same characters, just as it happened with Top Gun and Mad Max. It’s like meeting your family members after a long time. Secondly, as an Australian fan told me, Gadar 2 is a family film and finally, the patriotic flavour touched a chord.”

On the acerbic tribe who are dubbing the film as overtly jingoistic, he laughs, “When my character says Hindustan zindabad with patriotic fervour and enthused gusto they say it’s jingoistic. Frankly, till date I have not understood what jingoism truly means. Critics can coin whatever word they choose to.” To those who still don’t understand his idea of filmmaking he throws an open challenge, “Writing reviews is easy, try making a film.”

For someone who began his career at 18 as an assistant to BR Chopra, he does owe the filmmaker a debt of gratitude. “Jo kuch seekha unse hi toh seekha.” Among the many lessons he learnt was that story is the king. He adds, “Few minutes into the film and the setting, the costumes, makeup and the camera angles cease to matter. What is important is whether your story connects with the audiences emotionally or not. Today there is much talk about content where again they look at all possible aspects but miss the emotional connect.”

Among the many integral elements of a successful film, besides a strong storyline, he pinpoints, “It should appeal to one and all not just niche audiences. Besides, it must possess the singular ability to entertain; make people smile, laugh and cry. And there can be no Indian film without music.”

With films like Hukumat, Veer, Apne, et al to his credit, he looks back at his journey with a great deal of satisfaction. As his hit flop report card reads a favourable 80 per cent, with Gadar franchise shining like a beacon clearly he has no reason to complain. Gadar’s success could have been a double-edged sword…. for every time people do expect you to match the same feat. But with Gadar 2 rivalling the prequel, he can easily proclaim, “My journey has just begun.”