As 2008’s monster movie Ghajini smashes box office records, Madhu Mantena, co-producer of the film, tells Sify.com about the amazing success story of this Aamir Khan starrer. Excerpts from an interview:
Did you expect Ghajini to be this big?
The response to Ghajini has been overwhelming. We knew we had one of the biggest ever films in hand. We wanted to ensure that the film got the opening it deserves. Which is why we went ahead with the release of 1,500 prints and created an unprecedented marketing buzz around the film.
We’ve already collected a gross of Rs 170 crore worldwide and I'm sure this will be the first Indian film to cross Rs 200 crore in collections.
It’s been two long years of hard work and the team is totally elated.
Why did you choose to remake Ghajini?
The time was right for the return of action films. Thanks to Yashraj and the rest, action movies went out of the window as people began to lap up Rom Coms and love stories.
But remakes of movies starring southern stars like Vijay, Rajinikanth and Chiranjeevi were still watched keenly in cities like Mumbai. And we thought this was a good time to bring back the action.
Would you have done this film without Aamir?
Aamir is the best person I can think of for this role. He is India's finest actor and his dedication is unparalleled. But my policy is to never say never. I don’t know if I would have done this movie without him, but I'm just glad that things worked out with Aamir.
What about reports that Aamir's creative interference led to changes in the script?
Aamir is among the best directors, the best producers and the best marketing strategists in this country. It would have been stupid not to use his expertise.
Cinema is a collaborative effort. And the more domain experts you rope into a movie, the better it works for the movie.
But having said that, at the end, cinema remains one man's vision -- In this case, the director's vision. And no one can take the credit away from A R. Murugadoss for making Ghajini what it is.
So, why was the climax changed? The Hindi version ends on a more positive note.
Since it was a remake, it was a special journey for Murugadoss. He wanted the remake to be better than the original, and so, made the change.
Ghajini had a fantastic marketing plan and some unique promotional campaigns. Which was your favourite?
I think we had the best marketing strategy ever. But the thing about Ghajini is that the movie had elements that lend itself to good marketing: Aamir's unique haircut, his new body, short-term memory loss. There were various campaigns we did: Creating a Ghajini mannequin, making Aamir Khan turn barber, the body-building videos.
But all these only had noise value. I believe what worked best was the audio visual promos. That is what got people interested and made them want to see the film.
What next?
I'm working on a film with Abbas Tyrewala, who I think is among the best talent we have around. It's a romantic comedy with John (Abraham) in the lead.
You've had a close association with Ram Gopal Varma. Can we expect to see you make a film with RGV?
That would be a dream come true. But it's too big an ambition for me. I still see myself as his employee. And I would always want to work for him, not with him.
Coming back to Ghajini, were you worried that the violence would put off children and family audiences?
Yes..that thought did cross our mind. But after the film was complete, we saw that though it was a violent film, it was an effective revenge story. If we could get people involved in the story, they would empathise with the character, and root for him so much that the violence would be incidental.
Do you think Asin has entered the big league in Bollywood with Ghajini?
Yes..The film has worked wonders for her, and I am sure she has a great career ahead in Bollywood.
Why was Jiah Khan ignored in the promos?
Jiah has done a fantastic job in Ghajini. But our marketing strategy was to highlight the romance of the lead characters and the short term memory loss angle. So we thought it would be forced if we introduced Jiah in the marketing campaign.
But the film belongs to her as much as it does to all of us. Jiah respected our decision, and is savouring the success of the film along with the rest of us.
Did the cuts by the censors disappoint you?
Yes...there is a shot in the original ... of blood dripping out of a tap. It was one of my favourites. But we wanted a U/A certificate. So all's fair.
And finally, tell us something about your film career till date...
When I was 18, I started my first music company in Telugu. That went bust because I didn't know how to do business at that point in time. I then joined Ram Gopal Varma's The Factory. Due to a crisis, I got the opportunity to run the firm for 4-5 years. I moved on to Adlabs to head their international distribution network.
Through all these roles, I noticed that the quality of content was not in my hands. I wanted to be the one that created content, which is why when I decided to turn into production.
Source: sify.com
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