People thought I’d make ladylike film: Farah on debut film

By Natalia Ningthoujam
New Delhi, April 30 (IANS) It had a gripping cycle rickshaw chase scene and a heated fist fight between superstar Shah Rukh Khan and action hero Suneil Shetty. Choreographer-filmmaker Farah Khan�s �very loved film� �Main Hoon Na� had all elements that was anything but �ladylike�.

As the film turned 10 Wednesday, she doesn�t regret choosing the superhit action drama that thrilled the audiences to the hilt to launch her as a director.

Farah went into a nostalgic mode when asked about her film completing 10 years.

�We got very nostalgic. All photos my fans are sending me. I don�t even have those photos. Even in office, we couldn�t find pictures because we changed office twice. We remember it like it was last year or something and suddenly it�s been 10 years,� Farah told IANS.

�I wanted to make it for so long. It took around two to three years before I got to make it…from the time I started writing the script. It was a very different film for a woman director to make at that point. People were not expecting this kind of film. They thought I�d make some ladylike film,� she added.

Calling it a �very macho film�, the movie also gave Shah Rukh, the lead actor of the film, a break from romantic sagas like �Kal Ho Naa Ho� and �Chalte Chalte�.

�It was a very macho movie. Even for Shah Rukh. He wasn�t doing action at all that time. He was doing love stories. It was like an action macho film for him also. He enjoys doing action a lot more� He adds a lot in terms of making the action more thrilling� and it did well everywhere – north, south, interior belt,� she said.

Though she thinks there�s always room for improvement, she considers �Main Hoon Na� to be the perfect film to launch her as a director.

�I had so much fun making it. It�s a very loved film. It comes almost everyday on TV and everyday I get messages on Twitter or BB that they are watching it for the 20th time and still love it. I wouldn�t want to change things. I am very happy. Now my kids watch it. They enjoy it a lot,� said the mother of triplets.

It�s been 10 years, but the 48-year-old still feels nervous.

After pausing for a while, Farah, who has two superhits behind her, said: �I am not confident as director. I still get nervous. I don�t know whether I am heading in the right direction or not. I was far more confident when I was making �Main Hoon Na�. Now, pressure is there.�

The �Om Shanti Om� director is now tied up with �Happy New Year�, which she likes to call her �biggest movie�.

��Happy New Year� is very hectic. It is definitely biggest movie Shah Rukh and I have made. It�s a very big movie in terms of scale, star cast and everything. Every shoot has thousands of junior artists. It�s a difficult film for me. But we are having so much fun. The cast and crew are lovely,� she said.

The movie also stars Deepika Padukone, Sonu Sood and Abhishek Bachchan.

She has done so much, but still has a lot more to do. When asked what�s left to explore, she said: �Arey, lots more.�