‘Dhurandhar a perfect film after Sholay’: Sooraj Barjatya says ‘hats off’ to Aditya Dhar after advocating family-oriented content

Sooraj Barjatya has always advocated for family-oriented films. He’s made a career out of that genre, right from his 1989 directorial debut Maine Pyar Kiya, starring Salman Khan and Bhagyashree, to his upcoming release, Yeh Prem Mol Liya, starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Sharvari Wagh. In fact, he reveals that he makes a phone call to any filmmaker who comes up with a family-oriented subject in the otherwise violent cinema landscape of today. “All subjects should get made but this type of content is very important,” says Barjatya on SCREEN Spotlight, adding, “So that we can tell the younger generation to trust, hope, and support each other otherwise we’re all getting divided. Why should there be any loneliness?” He himself has served as a showrunner to a family-oriented show Sangamarmar on JioHotstar. He confessed that despite it not being a family-oriented film, he also loved watching Aditya Dhar’s “superb” blockbuster spy thriller Dhurandhar, starring Ranveer Singh. He explains why: “As a filmmaker, whatever’s good is good. I think Dhurandhar is a perfect picture after Sholay. Every character is so well done. Hats off to Aditya.” In an earlier edition of Screen Spotlight, actor Rakesh Bedi had also hailed Dhurandhar as a “perfect ensemble” after Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 seminal blockbuster Sholay. Besides Dhurandhar, another film that really impressed Barjatya was Mohit Suri’s Saiyaara last year. Like Maine Pyar Kiya launched Salman and Bhagyashree, Saiyaara was also a romantic drama that launched newcomers Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda. “When Saiyaara released, I was so happy for Adi and Mohit,” reveals Barjatya. Aditya Chopra, like Barjatya and his own protégé Karan Johar, is a second-generation filmmaker who’s now headlining a studio founded by his father/ancestor. All three of them made their debut within the same decade, and achieved overnight success with films that somewhere bridged the gap between family-oriented films and young romance. Barjatya is all praise for both Chopra and Johar, both his juniors. “As a filmmaker, Adi is one of the best, if not the best. We keep pressurising him to direct one more. According to me, his Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is so beautiful. If you go with the dialogues, I don’t think anyone writes better than Adi,” says Barjatya. Chopra’s last successful directorial was the 2008 romantic comedy Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma. He hasn’t directed a film after his 2016 setback, Befikre, starring Ranveer Singh and Vaani Kapoor. Also Read — ‘Kaun Samay? Mera Samay achha chal raha hai’: Ranveer Allahbadia takes a dig at Samay Raina’s India’s Got Latent revelations, says he’s full of positivity “I remember Karan came to me with the script of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001)…. I was floored with his narration, his honesty, and the way he extracts work from everyone and yet provide every ras,” adds Barjatya. He claims that he continues to learn from younger filmmakers even today, another example being Amit R Sharma, who helmed the 2018 family drama Badhaai Ho. “When I watch Badhaai Ho even today, I learn so much. It’s an ongoing process,” says Barjatya. Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.