Meet The Man Behind Kesari 2

‘I
found
a
story
that
merged
my
two
passions,
history
and
law.
I
couldn’t
have
found
a
better
story
for
my
debut
film.’

Akshay
Kumar
may
just
have


a
winner
on
his
hands
with

Kesari:
Chapter
2,
giving
his
career
a
much-needed
respite
from
a
spate
of
flops.

The
film,
a
courtroom
drama
revolving
around
the
Jallianwala
Bagh
massacre,
has
been
directed
by
first-timer

Karan
Singh
Tyagi.

A
lawyer
by
training,
Tyagi
has
written
OTT
shows
like

Bandish
Bandits
and

Kaalkoot.

Kesari
2


may
not
have
got
it
right
historically,
but
Tyagi
defends
his
work,
telling

Subhash
K
Jha,
“Just
like
my
screenwriter
hero
Aaron
Sorkin,
who
said
that
movies
on
real
life
events
and
people
are
not
supposed
to
be
photographs.
They
can
be
‘paintings’.
In
a
painting,
there
is
more
freedom
to
express
an
idea,
more
latitude
in
creating
a
sense
of
drama.”

How
did
you
achieve
this
synthesis
of
history
and
fiction
in
your
directorial
debut?

You
called
it
‘synthesis
of
history
and
fiction’
and
that
is
exactly
what
I
wanted
it
to
be.

Just
like
my
screenwriter
hero
Aaron
Sorkin,
who
said
that
movies
on
real
life
events
and
people
are
not
supposed
to
be
photographs.

They
can
be
‘paintings’.

In
a
painting,
there
is
more
freedom
to
express
an
idea,
more
latitude
in
creating
a
sense
of
drama.

I
wanted
Sankaran
Nair’s
story
to
reach
the
widest
possible
audience.

With
the
support
of
his
family,
my
writing
team
and
I
set
out
to
create
a
portrait
of
a
man,
who
had
a
transformational
journey
from
a
British
loyalist
to
the
country’s
biggest
patriot.
He
is
somebody
who
used
the
power
of
the
courts
and
the
law
to
bring
down
an
empire.

Normally,
a
filmmaker
would
start
one’s
directorial
career
with
something
much
lighter,
maybe
a
romcom.
To
what
do
we
owe
your
interest
in
history?

I
am
a
lawyer
by
profession
and
I
love
history.

Stories
on
the
idea
of
justice,
courts,
the
interplay
between
governments
and
citizens
have
always
fascinated
me.

I
have
grown
up
loving
Raj
Kumar
Santoshi’s
work
like

Damini,
Ghayal…

I
have
been
fascinated
by
courtroom
dramas
from
the
West,
like
Rob
Reiner’s

A
Few
Good
Men.

I
count
Sidney
Lumet’s

Verdict
as
one
of
my
all-time
favourite
movies.

Here
I
found
a
story
that
merged
my
two
passions,
history
and
law.
I
couldn’t
have
found
a
better
story
for
my
debut
film.

There
have
been
other
films
on
Jallianwala
Bagh
and
most
recently,
a
series
by
Ram
Madhvani
called

The
Waking
Of
A
Nation.
Was
there
a
fear
of
repetition?

I
respect
Ram
Madhvani
as
a
filmmaker
and
yes,
of
course,
there
was
a
fear
of
repetition
as
both
our
stories
covered
the
same
topic.

But
both
stories
appeared
on
different
mediums.

Both
have
found
love
from
the
audience.

I
believe
the
more
real-life
stories
emerge
in
our
popular
culture,
the
better.

Tell
us
about
the
cast.
Was
it
tough
getting
the
British
cast
in
place?

I
have
been
lucky
to
have
a
fantastic
cast.

Akshay
(Kumar)
sir,
Maddy
(R
Madhavan)
sir,
Ananya
Pandey,
Regena
Cassandrra…
all
outstanding
actors,
who
contributed
so
much
to
the
narrative.

Getting
the
British
cast
right
was
key.

We
held
auditions
in
the
UK
for
months
before
finalising
the
cast.

Simon-Paisley
Day
as
General
Dyer
is
terrific!

Michael
Parr,
Alexandra
Moloney
and
Steven
Hartley
are
outstanding
actors.

What
was
Karan
Johar
like
as
a
producer?
Did
you
get
a
free
hand
to
do
what
you
wanted?

He
is
the
best
producer
a
director
can
get.

As
a
first-time
director,
having
a
producer
like
him,
who
championed
my
vision
so
beautifully,
made
all
the
difference.

What
are
you
directing
next?

I
am
writing
something
but
it
is
too
early
to
speak
about
it.