Shree is an edge of the seat thriller: Director Rajesh Bachchani

Rajesh Bachchani, who has worked on serials like Shhhhh Koi Hai, Kahani Saat Pheron Ki, Comedy Circus, Nach Le etc and films like Gayab, is making his directorial debut with the Hindi feature film Shree produced by Vikram M Shah under the banner of CIEMME Entertainment Pvt. Ltd in association with Filmy Tadka Productions. Tellychakkar.com meets up with Bachchani who is onto last minute preparations for the release of the film, for a candid talk: Excerpts: Tell us something about yourself? (smiles) Well, I am here in the entertainment industry since the last 12 years. In these many years, I have written for various TV shows and have assisted in few films too. Just for your knowledge, recently I wrote two animation films that are yet to release. From where did you get the idea of Shree? (pauses) Trust me, I for one cannot answer ki ideas aate kahan se hain; it just comes automatically. I got this idea too just like that, one fine day. But while developing it, I had only one aim, and that was to write a story that surprises or shocks even me every minute. The basic idea while writing for Shree was, if I get these jhatkas while writing, the audience will also get it while watching. Would you tell us something about the film? Well, Shree is a love story with a paranormal element. This is the first time that a love story and a paranormal angle have been blended together to form a plot like never before. This is all I can say, for if I say furthermore, it will be like disclosing the entire content of the film. In short, I can say that the film is an edge of the seat thriller. Besides Hussain Kuwajerwala, others in the cast includes Anjali Patil, Paresh Ganatra, Paritosh Sand, Shivani Tanksale, Rio Kapadia, Jeetendra among others. This kind of a film does require real-life locations. How did you go about the process? That’s the magic boss! A crowd would gather wherever we shot. But we were always fast in winding up a shot in record time and move out even before onlooker realized anything. How was your experience been directing your first film? (scratches his head) Hmm! I don’t know how to put that into words, it was such a mixed experience... you can say that it was a mixture of excitement and exertion that needed a whole lot of passion, patience and proper preparation. I had to keep both my Dil and Dimaag on while making the film. After the support of my entire team, the making turned out to be a smooth process. You have worked in both TV and films. What is the difference between the two mediums? (smiles) See, for both the mediums, one has to put in an equal amount of hard work and talent. The only difference is, in television if one episode doesn’t work out good, you can anytime try to make do your weaknesses and make the next one a masterpiece. But in films, there is 'no second chance'. If your product is good, you can be at the top, but if not, there is every possibility of you being thrown out. In TV, your work goes as per the reaction of the audiences, while in film you have to guess the reaction in advance. Any incident you recall while shooting for the film? (blushes) Yup there are many. How’s the working experience with your star cast? Our full team was working together for the first time and mostly all of us were first timers. Our passion and frequency matched big time. It was great to work with people who understand you and your working pattern. How would you describe your producer? I just have to say one thing about my producer, CIEMME Entertainment, they know what a diamond is and know very well how to pick the real one. By choosing Shree as their first film, they have proved the same. The best thing is that they have given us a much bigger platform than we had ever imagined. Our whole team is really thankful to them. So the producer, director and actor are all making their debut with Shree! All I can say is that it means more passion, more determination and more hope. What according to you is USP of this movie Shree? It’s undoubtedly the script. What inspired you to choose a band to give music? Actually in this band Talaash (which has scored the music of Shree), there is a guy named Sanjay, with whom I relate to a lot. He is just like me, bald. So, to have another bald man as company, I chose them (laughs out loud). Jokes apart, trust me, I had tried almost seven music directors for Shree, but it was Talaash which did justice to my film. All said and done, I think it is just their talent and hard work which inspired me to choose them. Your next project in the pipeline? I have three scripts ready with me, but they are just scripts yet, not projects. After we release Shree, I'll decide on my next project.