Why Varun-Samantha Had To Do Action Themselves

‘In
the
current
world
of
action
cinema,
where
everything
is
high-tech
and
glossy,
what
if
we
go
back
in
time
and
take
out
all
the
gadgets?’

For
an
intense
spy
thriller,

Honey
Bunny
seems
like
a
tongue-in-cheek
title.

“We
wanted
a
contradictory
title
to
an
action
drama.
So
it’s
kind
of
ironical.
Also,
it’s
got
a
couple
of
meanings,”
Director

Raj
Nidimoru
—
one
half
of
the
Raj
&
DK
duo
—
explains
to

Subhash
K
Jha.

“That,
you
know,
you
have
this
intense
action
drama
going
on,
but
it’s
called
something
as
frivolous
as

Honey
Bunny.
It’s
like
a
child
thing,
you
know,
because
it’s
got
a
child
in
the
middle.

“Varun
(Dhawan)
and
Samantha
are
like
the
father
and
mother
to
this
kid.
It’s
an
endearment.
Initially,
the
idea
was
to
use
this
girl
as
a
honey
trap.
Then
she
comes
out
of
it.
The
same
thing
with
Bunny
(Varun’s
character),
you
know,
like
a
fun
guy,
an
action
stuntman.
They
have
these
fun
names.”

What
made
the
director
duo
cast
Varun
Dhawan
and
Samantha?

“Varun
hasn’t
done
action
before.
This
is
his
first
action
role,”
Raj
says.

But
Samantha
had
done
action
very
effectively
in

The
Family
Man
2.

“It
was
very
effective
and
straight-faced.
This
time,
we
could
have
a
range,
so
it
will
be
fun
to
see
a
Honey
turning
into
a
warrior.
They
have
delivered
and
how,
both
of
them!

“Varun
did
it
like
as
if
he
was
built
to
be
an
action
hero.
He
aced
it.
That’s
our
idea
because
I
always
feel
that
some
actors
have
the
potential
to
do
a
lot
of
things.
It’s
just
a
matter
of
getting
that
character.

“Similarly,
Samantha
hadn’t
done
action
before

Family
Man
2.
She
hadn’t
held
a
gun
before

Family
Man
2.
And
the
kind
of
amazing
fame
that
it
got
her!
I
mean,
that’s
her
claim
to
fame
because
her
feature
films
have
not
really
worked,
sadly.
So,
you
see
a
different
side
of
her.”

Raj
explains
how

Citadel:
Honey
Bunny
takes
the
action
genre
to
a
different
direction.

“We
have
shifted
into
a
new
gear,
an
action
drama
genre,
which
we
haven’t
done
before.
More
than
that,
I
feel
in
the
current
world
of
action
cinema,
where
everything
is
high-tech
and
glossy,
what
if
we
go
back
in
time
and
take
out
all
the
gadgets?
I’m
talking
about
the
contemporary
actionscape,
like

Mission
Impossible
2,
Fast
And
Furious
2
even
in
India.
Basically,
everybody
is
doing
modern
action.
So
we
thought,
why
don’t
we
do
it
more
grounded,
earthy,
organic?

“Like,
fists
and
revolvers.
Traditional,
old-fashioned.
Keeping
the
fights
very
personal.
Varun
and
Samantha
had
to
do
their
own
action
for
it
to
be
effective
and
not
have
stunt
doubles.
They
had
to
do
most
of
the
action.
They
had
to
push
themselves
to
get
to
that
level.”

Raj
and
DK
have
shut
themselves
from
public
expectations:
“You
just
have
to
insulate
yourself
from
extraneous
forces.
You
do
what
you
want
to
do.

“When
we
do

Family
Man
or

Stree
(Raj
&
DK
are
the
co-producers),
we
aren’t
thinking
about
how
it
will
turn
out.

“I’m
glad
to
see
that
another
genre
creation
we
did
has
gone
so
far
that
it
doesn’t
require
stars.
Even
during

Stree,
we
thought
it
would
do
decently
at
box
office,
but
it
became
such
a
big
success
because
it
was
really
about
the
concept.

“Nobody
expected
it
to
do
some
Rs
175
crore
(Rs
1.75
billion).
This
is
crazy!
So
the
power
of
concepts,
the
power
of
a
fresh
perspective
on
a
genre
is
what
I’m
seeing
escalate
more
and
more,
which
is
awesome.”

When
will

The
Family
Man
come
back?

“We
have
started
shooting

Family
Man
3
and
almost
done
75
percent
of
it.
We
will
be
done
with
the
shoot
by
another
month
or
so.
The
same
cast
with
a
couple
of
additions,”
he
says.

Do
Raj-DK
see
their
achievement
in

The
Family
Man
as
a
game-changer?

Raj
disagrees:
“We
haven’t
set
out
to
make
any
change
in
the
game.
But
I’m
very
happy
it
has
made
a
mark.
Each
show
is
different
from
the
other.
As
for
this
one
(Honey
Bunny),
more
than
anything
else,
it’s
the
franchise;
the
colossal
effort
that’s
going
into
it
in
terms
of
a
global
idea.
That
so
many
film-makers,
so
many
creative
minds
are
getting
together
and
creating
a
world
across
the
world.

“It’s
like
a
pan-world
feeling,
right?
In
terms
of
Italians
coming
together,
Mexicans,
now
somebody
else…
it’s
a
fascinating
idea
to
be
a
part
of.

“The
journey,
the
world,
with
all
these
different
schools
of
film-making,
different
tones
and
styles
coming
in
together.
That
was
the
biggest
draw
for
us.
We
have
never
collaborated
with
anyone,
right?
The
only
collaboration
we
have
is
with
(writer)
Sita
Menon.”

“We
heard
the
American
version
of

The
Citadel
at
the
script
level.
We
were
all
part
of
the
reading,
so
it
was
pretty
cool
to
be
included.
I
could
see
each
one
was
totally
different.
The
Russo
brothers,
if
you
see
their
work,
they’re
very,
very,
self-aware.
So
I
like
the
fact
that
they
are
independent
film-makers,
just
the
two
of
them,
writing,
directing,
producing.

“Where
they
started
off
and
where
they
ended
up
being…
massive!
Some
two
billion
something
(dollars)

Avengers
Endgame
made!
They
had
the
resources,
they
had
the
plans,
the
ideas.
And
we
were
discussing
on
the
same
level.

“I
don’t
think
our
productions
work
like
that.
What
it
costs
to
make
something
here
is
different
from
what
it
costs
to
make
in
America.
We’re
always
amazed
that,
oh
my
God,
it
cost
them
10
million
dollars
to
make
that
feature
film.
A
similar
story
in
India
would
have
cost
us
Rs
10
crore
(Rs
100
million)
too.
That’s
just
the
way
it
costs
in
India.
So
to
each
version,
its
own
vibe,
I
guess.

“We
shot

Honey
Bunny
like
an
Indian
production,
not
a
Hollywood
one.
We
shot
it
like
how
we
did

The
Family
Man
—
at
those
budgets,
that
production,
our
style,
our
own
way
of
working.”

Citadel:
Honey
Bunny
will
stream
on
Amazon
Prime
Video
from
November
7.