The Man Behind Bollywood’s Blockbuster Horror Films

‘People
worship
Krishna.
People
don’t
worship
Ved
Vyas,
who
wrote
the
Mahabharata.’

‘It’s
a
cultural
thing
because
we
don’t
see
the
heroes
behind
the
screen,
we
see
the
heroes
who
are
in
front
of
the
screen.’

Riding
high
on
the
success
of

Stree
2,
Screenwriter

Niren
Bhatt
has
firmly
established
himself
as
a
master
of
blending
horror
and
comedy,
a
genre
that
has
garnered
immense
popularity
in
Bollywood
over
the
past
few
years.

With
films
such
as

Bhediya,
Munjya
and

Stree
2
under
his
belt,
he
is
the
creative
mastermind
behind
Maddock
Films’
much-loved
horror
universe
which
will
keep
expanding
in
future
with
new
films
like

Thamba,
Bhediya
2
and

Stree
3.

In
this
candid
conversation
with



Rediff.com
Contributor

Mohnish
Singh,
Bhatt
reveals
the
secret
of
his
success:
“If
the
storytelling
is
correct,
it
connects
with
people.”

Stree
2
has
set
a
new
benchmark
in
Bollywood.
How
do
you
feel?

I’m
feeling
great,
obviously,
with
such
a
success.
We
don’t
know
how
to
process
it.

It’s
a
great
feeling
when
you
work
hard
on
something
for
so
long
and
eventually,
it
connects
with
people,
resonates
with
them
and
gets
its
due.

What,
according
to
you,
connected
with
the
audience?

Good
storytelling,
in
any
form
or
genre
will
connect
with
the
audience.

If
it
is
engaging
enough
for
people,
be
it
horror
comedy,
action
films,
spy
films
or
any
other
genre,
it
will
connect
with
the
audience.

In
simpler
words,
if
the
storytelling
is
correct,
it
connects
with
the
people.

When
you
were
working
on
this
particular
story,
did
you
expect
it
would
become
the
biggest
Bollywood
blockbuster
of
2024?

See,
when
we
make
scripts,
we
just
concentrate
on
getting
the
script
right,
getting
the
screenplay
right,
getting
the
dialogues
right.

It
should
be
entertaining
enough.

It
has
to
be
true
to
the
subject.

It
has
to
be
true
to
the
story.

It
has
to
be
true
to
the
characters.

We
don’t
think
about
numbers.

We
knew
it
would
be
received
well
and
that
people
would
like
the
film,
that
they
would
laugh,
blow
whistles…

But
we
never
thought
in
terms
of
numbers.

What
do
you
think
the
future
holds
for
the
horror-comedy
genre,
particularly
within
the
framework
of
Maddock
Films?

It’s
not
about
the
genre.

It’s
about
the
storytelling.
So
good
storytelling
in
whichever
genre
will
work.

If
I
give
example
of
my
films,

Bhediya,
Munjya
and

Stree
2,
everything
has
connected
well
with
people.

Obviously,
we
would
like
to
expand
the
universe
further,
include
more
characters,
and
do
justice
to
the
existing
ones.

You
are
a
lyricist
also,
but
have
mostly
penned
lyrics
for
Gujarati
films.
Why
do
you
not
write
lyrics
for
your
Hindi
films?

I
write
for
Hindi
also.
In

Stree
2,
the
rap
song
featuring
Pankaj
Tripathi,
is
written
by
me.

Having
said
that,
it’s
a
different
job
altogether.
I
can’t
do
two
jobs
at
once.

I
need
to
concentrate
on
screenplay
writing
because
I’m
predominantly
a
screenplay
writer.

If
I
start
writing
Hindi
lyrics,
my
entire
day
will
be
consumed
by
that,
going
to
music
settings
and
meeting
producers
and
music
labels…

More
or
less,
I
have
been
screenplay
writing
for
the
last
10
years,
so
I
can
do
it
relatively
quickly.

Screenwriters
often
don’t
receive
the
same
level
of
recognition
as
directors
or
actors.
Why
do
you
think
that
is?

See,
it’s
a
cultural
thing.

People
worship
Krishna.
People
don’t
worship
Ved
Vyas,
who
wrote
the
Mahabharata.

It’s
a
cultural
thing
because
we
don’t
see
the
heroes
behind
the
screen,
we
see
the
heroes
who
are
in
front
of
the
screen.

Most
of
the
people
just
connect
with
that,
and
they
don’t
take
the
efforts
to
know
who
created
those
heroes.

You
cannot
blame
people
or
anyone
for
that.

Have
you
ever
faced
any
personal
challenges
or
frustrations
regarding
recognition
or
credit
for
your
work?

No,
I
haven’t.

An
interesting
thing
about
recognition…
I
used
to
write
for

Taarak
Mehta
Ka
Ooltah
Chasma.
Even
a
person
who
has
done
a
cameo
in
an
episode
will
get
mobbed
wherever
he
goes.

But
I,
even
after
writing
500,000
episodes,
will
not
get
recognised
by
people.

Then
again,
I
need
to
understand
it.

It’s
the
nature
of
my
job.

If
my
ambition
is
to
be
famous,
I
should
do
something
which
will
make
my
face
famous.

I
should
become
an
influencer
or
something
like
that.

But
if
my
ambition
is
to
write,
then
I
should
understand
the
nature
of
the
job.

Do
you
think
screenwriters
need
to
be
as
rebellious
as
Salim-Javed
used
to
be
in
their
heyday?

Salim-Javed
is
a
different
case
study.
They
are
a
once
in
a
millennium
kind
of
people.

The
kind
of
success
they
had,
the
kind
of
craft
they
had,
the
kind
of
power
and
command
they
had
over
the
medium
was
unparalleled.

Today’s
screenwriters
can’t
even
dream
about
stuff
like
that.

Having
23
blockbusters
out
of
25
films
is
unbelievable.

If
you
can
create
that
kind
of
value
for
people,
then
obviously,
you
will
command
more
power,
respect,
money,
everything.

Tell
us
about
your
early
days
in
the
industry.
What
drew
you
to
screenwriting?

I
come
from
Bhavnagar
in
Gujarat.
Even
there,
I
used
to
write
plays.

When
I
went
to
study
in
Ahmedabad
and
then
Baroda,
I
continued
working
in
theatre.

Even
during
my
MBA
in
Bombay,
I
was
doing
plays.
I
have
also
pursued
an
MA
degree.
I’m
a
double
postgraduate.

When
I
started
a
corporate
job
as
a
business
consultant,
I
would
write
plays
alongside.

Eventually,
from
plays,
I
graduated
to
television
serials
and
then
Gujarati
films.

I
wrote
a
Gujarati
film,
which
has
just
re-released.
It’s
called

Bey
Yaar.
It
was
a
blockbuster
in
Gujarati,
starring
Pratik
Gandhi
in
his
debut
role.

It
was
Divyang
Thakkar’s
first
film
and
Sachin-Jigar’s
first
film
in
Gujarati.

So
from
Gujarati
films,
I
graduated
to
Hindi
films.

What
led
you
to
quit
TV
and
focus
on
films?

TV
is
too
exhausting.
It
tires
you
because
it’s
a
daily
medium.

You
have
to
deliver
an
episode
everyday.
It
requires
a
lot
of
discipline
and
burns
you
out.

Somewhere
I
decided
that
I
have
worked
hard
enough
and
now
want
to
concentrate
on
films.

Obviously,
we
grow
up
watching
cinema,
so
our
first
fascination
is
always
with
films.

I
was
doing
Gujarati
films
and
some
Hindi
films
alongside
television.
Then
one
day,
I
stopped
doing
television
entirely,
and
started
doing
just
films.

While
the
loyal
audience
of

Taarak
Mehta
Ka
Ooltah
Chashma
watches
the
show
religiously,
there
is
a
segment
of
the
audience
which
feels
that
it
is
being
overstretched.
Do
you
think
so?

No.
Actually,
what
happens
is
that

Taarak
Mehta
Ka
Ooltah
Chashma
is
watched
by
a
particular
age
group.
When
they
are
in
that
age
group,
they
watch
it.
Then
they
grow
out
of
it.

Then
a
new
generation
comes,
and
they
fall
in
love
with
that
show.
Then,
they
also
grow
up.

That
show
has
seen
many
generations.

People
watch
it
and
then
fall
out
of
it.

My
daughter,
who
is
now
11,
used
to
be
a
big
fan
of
the
show.
Now
she
is
watching
anime.

It’s
a
cycle
and
it
goes
on
like
that.

Is
there
any
favourite
actor
or
director
that
you
want
to
write
for?

See,
I
am
comfortable
writing
with
Amar
Kaushik
because
most
of
my
films
have
been
with
him.

He
has
done
wonders
with
my
scripts,
so
obviously,
he
is
my
favourite
director.

In
terms
of
actors,
I
am
a
bit
biased
because
my
career
started
with
Pratik
Gandhi.
Most
of
my
Gujarati
films
were
with
him.
So
he
is
my
favorite
actor
alongside
Rajkummar
Rao
because
he
has
been
a
predominant
part
of
my
films.

Another
favourite
is
Abhishek
Banerjee
because
he
has
also
always
been
in
all
my
films,
like

Made
In
China,
Bala,
Bhediya,
Munjya
and

Stree.

If
you
ever
get
an
opportunity
to
write
a
biopic,
who
would
you
pick
as
the
subject?

I
would
like
to
write
a
biopic
about
myself
only
because
it
is
very
difficult
to
show
the
internal
conflict
externally.

Whatever
the
writer
does
is
always
happening
in
his
mind.
It
is
a
challenging
job
to
show
it
on
screen.

Maybe
someday,
I’ll
be
able
to
do
that.

What
are
you
currently
working
on?

Currently,
I
am
working
on
this
vampire
film.
It
is
the
next
in
the
horror-comedy
universe
of
Maddock
Films.