‘It Is Very Rare For A Sequel To Be Loved This Way’

‘Nobody
likes
preachy
stories.
When
you
lace
it
with
humour,
it
works.’

With
a
combination
of
big-budget,
tentpole
films
(Two

Stree
sequels
and

Bhediya)
as
well
as
a
low-budget
genre
hit
(Bala),
Director

Amar
Kaushik
holds
an
enviable
track
record
among
his
industry
peers.

As
Maddock
Film’s
ambitious
supernatural
universe
proves
lucrative,
Kaushik
transitions
to
an
equally
hot
producing
career
that
boasts
of
the
breakout
success
of

Munjya.

Six
years
after
his
debut
feature

Stree,
Kaushik
brings
its
follow
up

Stree
2
to
great
anticipation,
and
it
is
currently
raking
in


record
numbers
at
the
box
office
since
its
Independence
Day
release.

“I
want
people
to
have
a
great
time
with
my
movies,”
Amar
Kaushik
tells

Mayur
Sanap/Rediff.com
in
the
first
of
a
two-part
interview.

How
are
you
processing
all
that
love
coming
your
way
for

Stree
2?

We
are
very
happy
with
the
numbers.
We
knew
we
have
made
a
good
film
but
before
that,
we
knew
we
had
written
a
good
script.

Whenever
we
start
a
sequel,
there
is
always
pressure
of
going
above
the
first
film.
It
is
very
rare
for
a
sequel
to
be
loved
this
way;
both
audiences
and
critics
are
loving
it.

Our
focus
was
to
make
this
film
the
way
we
made
the
first
one.

I
wanted
the
audience
to
have
a
great
time
in
theatres.

It’s
a
tough
job
to
carry
forward
a
hugely
popular
franchise.
What
were
the
brainstorming
sessions
with
your
writer
partner
Niren
Bhatt
like?

Comedy
is
the
toughest
because
it
is
about
how
you
are
writing
it,
performing
it,
and
then
editing
it.

You
write
so
many
jokes
on
paper
but
they
don’t
necessarily
work
on
the
screen.
And
sometimes
the
joke
does
wonders
the
way
you
edit
it.

At
times
you
can’t
guess
what
would
work
with
the
audience.
For
example,
in
this
film,
the
way
Pankaj
Tripathi’s
character
says,
‘I
am
an
old
man’,
we
never
thought
that
line
would
become
such
a
big
thing
but
people
are
having
a
great
laugh
in
that
scene.

It
all
depends
the
kind
of
vibe
you
create
on
sets.
If
the
energy
is
positive
and
artists
are
able
to
bond
with
each
other,
it
shows.

Niren
and
I
decided
to
go
all
out
with
our
writing
but
be
sure
that
it
doesn’t
turn
slapstick.

We
drew
inspirations
from
our
personal
lives.
We
share
same
kind
of
humour.
When
we
sit
together,
it
automatically
comes
up.
The
idea
is
to
write
with
a
lot
of
joy
without
any
pressure,
and
people
will
like
it.

As
a
film-maker,
my
job
is
not
give
audiences
any

gyaan.
Of
course,
I
will
do
that
too
but
in
my
own
style.
Primarily,
I
just
want
to
entertain.
I
want
people
to
have
a
great
time
with
my
movies.

I
was
also
an
audience
some
time
back,
and
used
to
crave
for
fun
in
my
movie
watching
experiences
even
when
the
film
saying
is
something
important.
You
should
be
able
to
talk
about
the
film
after
it
ends.

Anything
changed
along
the
way
when
the
original
writer
duo
Raj
&
DK
parted
ways
from
the
franchise?

Nothing
really.
It
is
exactly
the
same
pattern
that
I
worked
on
in

Stree
2.

Even
when
I
was
working
on
other
projects,

Stree
was
on
my
mind
throughout.
I
knew
these
are
interesting
characters
and
have
unfinished
business.

We
also
thought
of
not
messing
around
with
its
cult
classic
status.

But
we
had
to
bring
it
back
because
of
strong
demand
from
the
audience.
We
served
it
only
because
audiences
wanted
it.

I
had
some
story
ideas
with
me,
so
Niren
was
brought
on
board.
We
jammed
together
and
he
wrote
the
first
draft.
We
took
it
to
Dinu
(Maddock’s
Dinesh
Vijan)
and
he
got
excited.

Then
we
took
it
to
the
cast
and
they
got
excited.

Have
Raj
&
DK
reached
out
to
you
with
their
reaction
for

Stree
2?

Not
yet.
They
must
have
seen
it,
but
I
don’t
know.
I
have
no
idea.

How
did
you
convince
Akshay
Kumar
for
a
cameo?

I
was
shooting
with
him
on

Sky
Force
(the
upcoming
thriller
film
that
Kaushik
is
co-producing
with
Maddock)
in
London.

We
were
standing
on
a
road
during
the
break
when
I
thought
I
would
him
for
this
role
in

Stree
2.

Initially,
I
was
apprehensive
about
asking
him
but
then
I
thought
I
would
just
let
it
out.

I
told
him
it’s
a
small
role,
would
he
like
to
hear
it?
He
agreed.

I
narrated
the
scene
and
within
half
an
hour,
he
said,
‘I
am
going
to
do
it.’

I
always
knew
I
wanted
someone
for
this
special
appearance
but
Akshay
was
a
completely
random
choice.
Even
Dinu
had
no
idea
about
this.

I
am
glad
he
said
yes
because
the
way
he
did
this
scene
is
something
else.
He
kept
asking
for
a
better
take,
even
though
I
was
happy
with
what
he
did.

His
comic
timing
is

kamaal
(wonderful).
We
grew
up
watching
his
comedies.

Today,
we
add
nuances
of
his
comedies
in
our
films.
To
get
him
on
board
was
very
exciting.

People
are
curious
if
he
is
going
to
be
a
Thanos-like
figure
of
this
universe.
What
are
your
plans
for
his
character?

I
don’t
want
to
say
much
right
now.

But
obviously,
we
have
thought
about
it.
(The
character)
should
gel
with
the
story
organically.
It
will
happen
once
we
start
writing
our
third
film.

All
your
films
have
a
subtle
social
message.

Stree
takes
a
potshot
at
patriarchy,

Bala
speaks
about
self-acceptance,

Bhediya
touches
upon
environmental
concern,
now

Stree
2
is
about
women’s
agency
in
a
social
set-up.
Do
you
consciously
design
subtext
in
your
films?

It
depends
on
the
story.

In

Stree
2,
Sarkata
is
a
demon
for
audiences
but
for
me,
he
represents
the
thinking
that
takes
society
in
a
backward
direction.

But
none
of
it
is
on
your
face,
it
is
in
the
subtext.

Nobody
likes
preachy
stories.
When
you
lace
it
with
humour,
it
works.

In

Bhediya
also,
we
initially
set
out
for
a
simple
jungle
story
but
by
the
end
of
second
or
third
draft,
we
thought
of
giving
him
a
mission
of
saving
the
forest.

Do
you
naturally
gravitate
towards
small-town
stories
and
characters?

It’s
not
necessary
but
yeah,
I
circle
back
to
it.
(Laughs)

The
Chanderi
town
that
we
see
in

Stree,
I
had
gone
there
as
a
kid
and
it
really
scared
me
during
the
night
time.

When
we
were
scouting
for
locations
for
first

Stree,
I
told
the
team
about
my
memories
of
Chanderi
and
we
decided
to
shoot
there.
That’s
how
Chanderi
became
the
Chanderi
that
we
see
in
this
film.

For

Bala,
I
grew
up
in
Kanpur,
so
I
could
vision
those
characters
from
that
part
of
the
country.

Bhediya
was
shot
in
Arunachal
Pradesh,
where
I
spent
my
childhood.
My
father
was
a
forest
ranger
there.

One
of
the
key
characters
in
any
film
is
location,
where
your
story
is
set.
This
is
as
valuable
as
your
actors.

Because
I
knew
these
places
so
well,
they
found
their
way
into
my
stories.

Also,
I
always
prefer
going
to
the
real
location.
Unless,
of
course,
I
am
shooting
for
something
like
the
climax
sequence
of

Stree
2,
we
had
to
build
a
set
for
that.

Even
the
interval
part
of
the
film,
where
the
group
is
running
away
on
bikes,
I
was
suggested
to
shoot
that
scene
in
Bombay’s
Film
City,
but
I
said
no
I
won’t
get
the
feel.

I
was
told
the
same
for
Tamannaah
Bhatia’s
song

Aaj
Ki
Raat,
but
I
wanted
to
shoot
it
at
the
real
location
only.

Unlike
the
first
one,
this
is
a
very
CGI
heavy
film.
In
the
age
where
audiences
are
exposed
to
sci-fi
and
fantasy
films
from
all
over
the
world,
how
challenging
is
it
to
fulfil
their
VFX
expectations?
And
how
do
you
make
sure
that
doesn’t
become
a
deterrent
when
you
are
telling
a
story
under
a
tight
budget?

Yeah,
that’s
true.
But
even
when
your
budgets
are
limited,
your
ambitions
are
big.
You
also
want
to
make
same
quality
films
like
the
west.

So
it
is
up
to
you
how
much
VFX
you
want
to
showcase.

In

Bhediya,
we
used
heavy
VFX
in
the
transformation
scene,
which
was
an
important
sequence.

In

Stree
2,
we
showed
only
a
few
glimpses
of
Sarkata
until
its
full
reveal
in
the
climax.

The
thing
is,
the
kind
of
budgets
Marvel
films
have
we
can’t
reach
there
despite
the
top
five
box
office
collections
of
our
films.

So
what
to
do?
You
might
receive
some
criticism,
but
that’s
fine.
At
least,
the
things
you
needed
right
must
be
perfect.
That’s
how
the
mathematics
go.

I
am
lucky
that
my
last
two
VFX
heavy
films
did
not
meet
harsh
criticism.

I
am
a
very
budget
friendly
director.
I
shot

Stree
2
in
52
days.
I
finish
shooting
quickly
and
move
on.