“The More Differently We Tell Our Stories, The Better It Will Be for The Box-office”- Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
For 14 years she told stories for India’s leading brands while her stint with Leo Burnett as Executive Creative Director. But soon she realised that she wanted to tell stories on a wider platform and follow her passion in filmmaking. She made her debut in 2016 with the heart-warming film NIL BATTEY SANNATTA, which garnered critical acclaim for its direction and sensitive handling of the subject matter. And her next Hindi film BAREILLY KI BARFI, which was a romantic comedy earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Director.
You guessed it right, we are talking about Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari. This time the ace director has got PANGA for her audience, a story of a new-age family that challenges stereotypes. The films casts Kangana Ranaut, Jassi Gill, Richa Chadda and Neena Gupta in the pivotal roles.
Team of Apeksha News Network had a brief chat with the filmmaker Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and here are the excerpts.
We have seen Kabaddi in films like PARDES, TEVAR and STUDENT OF THE YEAR 2. So, how different is PANGA, which is also based on this sport?
The films you mentioned only showed Kabaddi as a small part of the larger narrative. I have made PANGA which delves into the nuances of the game. The psyche of the players and the emotional and the financial trauma, and struggles they meet every day of their life. Kangana Ranaut plays the role of a Kabaddi player. This is the most challenging film of my career so far.
You have the biggest support of your husband Nitesh who has written the script of PANGA.
Oh yes! Nitesh has written the script of PANGA. We all know he is a very good writer and a director too! He had written DANGAL, which was also based on sports. Nitesh (Tiwari) did tell me that a film which highlights a woman in sports is always more challenging and he inspired me to do my best.
Cricket is the most popular game in India and people also watch it in a big way. Do you think Kabaddi is also a very popular game in India?
We all have played Kabaddi in school days, during our childhood. We need only an open ground and two teams, which is very easy to get. We have even played Pakda-Pakdi, Lagori, etc. during our childhood. I have seen women in sarees who have played Kabaddi. Now-a-days, Kabaddi is also shown in the TV channels. So, I think we must also give preferences to games other than Cricket. You go my village in India, and you will find people playing Kabaddi more than Cricket.
You have always highlighted middle class values in your films NIL BATTEY SANNATA, BAREILLY KI BAFI and now PANGA.
India belongs more to the middle classes. The audiences who come to the cinema halls are mostly middle-class ones. Most of the rich class people have been middle class people in their earlier life. So, my characters are mostly based on them. I have always dealt with the problems of the middle-class society. Hence, PANGA also deals with a middle-class family and the problems they face in life.
You are known to handle your characters in a different manner in your films and they come from small towns.
We have seen many love stories that are set in the cities, even abroad and lavish song picturizations, which ends up as musical love stories. I also made BAREILLY KI BARFI, which was a love story but was set in a small town and it becomes more challenging to depict the characters of smaller town. The best part of a small town is that the wider audiences who are mostly in small towns get themselves identified easily with my characters in the film. Hence, it makes sense to make a film, which is based in a small town. The success of BAREILLY KI BARFI proved that a filmmaker need not go to the foreign countries to make a memorable film and he/she can easily make a film with Indian sensibilities. The only thing one needs to be careful while making the film is that how differently we are telling these stories. The more differently we tell, the better it is for the box-office.
PANGA is clashing with STREET DANCER 2 on 24th January 2020. Do you think the collections will be divided between the two and both films will suffer at the box-office?
I don’t think so. We have seen many films clashing with each other and yet both becoming hits too, for example LAGAAN and GADAR. Both released on the same day and yet both were huge hits. I have made PANGA, which is a family drama, while STREET DANCER 2 is more on dancing and will appeal to the youth audiences more. So, the target audiences of both the films are different. As for Shraddha (Kapoor) who is the lead actress of STREET DANCER 2, she is like my own daughter and Varun is a dear friend of Nitesh and me. So, I also want STREET DANCER 2 to become a big hit. In today’s times, we can’t compete with each other. We have to co-exist with each other. Agar filmein nahin chaelengi, toh Producers kahan se aayenge hamaare paas? (If the films do not work, then how will producers come to us?) We pray, both the films get the audience and both ring the bell at the box-office.
You wanted Shankar Ehsan Loy to provide the original score for the songs when these days most of the films have remix versions of old hit numbers.
I am highlighting India, its rich culture and traditions and so I had told Shankar that we need original musical score for the film. As for the remix numbers, it has become a trend now-a-days to incorporate the remix numbers, but it will be always creditable if a song has an original tune and Shankar Ehsan Loy worked very hard to compose them. Shankar even told me that he is more comfortable in providing an original tune. I would always make India proud wherever my films goes and it is a matter of pride for me to showcase India in its glory and music is one of the strength of our country, isn’t it?
PANGA will hit the theatres on 24th January 2020 and Apeksha News Network wish good luck to the whole team of the film!
