Bada Naam Karenge director Palash Vaswani says, “Sooraj Barjatya sir wanted to know if I would like to do this story”

By Rajiv Vijayakar -

February 10, 2025 - 1:22 PM IST

He is missing the simplicity of Hindi movies he has grown up on: Maine Pyar Kiya, Hum Aapke Hain Koun!..., Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, for example, are Palash Vaswani’s idea of entertaining cinema for families that irrespective of where they hail from or are based, are Indians to the core.

Bada Naam Karenge director Palash Vaswani says, “Sooraj Barjatya sir wanted to know if I would like to do this story”

“I have grown up on single-screen entertainment from the time I was six!” declared Palash. “I hail from Gwalior but was staying in Raipur as a kid. I enjoyed the foam-wali seats with the smell of popcorn emanating from the halls. I enjoyed the sweet, innocent love stories with great music.”

He elaborated further, “People who come from small towns into big cities try to fit in. But they also remain rooted and have to balance both worlds. And I had to do that too, though there are things we can’t change, like the difference in accents!”

From all this arose his connect with Bada Naam Karenge, or rather, his rapport and congruence with the show that marks the OTT debut of Rajshri Entertainment. This is one of the oldest and most respected filmmaking banners and distributors in the country, and Palash’s joy knew no bounds when Sooraj R. Barjatya himself called him and asked whether he would like to direct such a show.

“I felt a complete connection with the story, written by S. Manasvi and Vidit Tripathi!” exulted Palash. “There were economic differences, variations in ideologies and the coming together of two worlds. The hero hails from a business family, is completely focused, wants to do his MBA and turn his family company into a multinational one. The girl is from a teachers’ family and wishes to graduate in Microbiology and then get a Ph.D. in Virology.”

Having been associate director on Permanent Roommates and directed Zeroes, Awkward Conversations with Parents and Cheesecake besides two seasons of Gullak, how did Palash land up with the Rajshris?

“Oh, Sooraj-sir had watched Gullak 2 and Gullak 3 and he wanted to know if I would like to do this story too!” said Palash. “What he had really liked about these shows was their simplicity.” For those who came in late, Gullak 2 ranked at no. 87 in the IMDb (Internet Movie Database)’s Top 250 shows across the world!

Palash stressed, “There are nine episodes of Bada Naam Karenge, and we have a message, but it is just there, not forced onto the viewer, as with Gullak. We are observing the characters as people through an empathetic lens, as relatability is very important and that’s what makes stories and characters very endearing.”

Palash prefers to look at the real core of modern India instead of what he strongly feels is the wrongly projected impression we get to watch in films and series. “In Gullak 2, we do see a mobile phone, but the young are not addicted to watching reels on it! The characters were not caricatures, and that’s what worked!” he pointed out. “Our young generation, as another example, is not one that’s addicted to pubs and parties but is working hard to become something and reach somewhere. That’s the true young India!”

Engineer by qualification from IIT Mumbai, Palash has stayed in the city for 17 years now. “I took a job at Infosys and was thrown out because by that time I also realized I can’t be a part of the rat-race!” he almost preened. With a handy cam, he then shot about seven films, and soon began to explore related avenues, landing a job as creative copywriter with Lowe Lintas, working on several TV commercials and brand campaigns for years before finding anchor in narrating stories.

Like the films he enjoys, Bada Naam Karenge has five variegated songs, two of which are lip-synch ones. They are composed by Anurag Saikia. “I find no merit in multiple composers!” he declared. “My lead players are new— Ritik Ghanshani and Ayesha Kaduskar—because I did not want preconceived images. But I have a solid supporting cast of seasoned actors—Kanwaljit Singh, Alka Amin, Deepika Amin, Rajesh Tailing, Anjana Sukhani and Jameel Khan (from Gullak).”

Palash is now planning two films, one an action comedy and the other a business drama. “Both will be rooted stories. I miss those lovely, simple movies and I want to strive towards making such films.”

Among his past work, we finally speak about my favourite work of his—Cheesecake, an almost Disney-like saga revolving around an adorable dog, which was released way back in 2020. “Oh! You remember that?” he exulted, his voice on the phone genuinely thrilled. “It happened from the heart! I love dogs and had one, though now we have three cats! I think making a story on an animal needs a lot of effort. We scouted about 50 trainers and watched keenly whether they really loved their animals. After all, we have to tailor our shoots to the animal’s moods, though I had a lot of fun! And yes, if things work out, I am planning to work with animals again!”

Also Read: Sooraj Barjatya opens up on The Rajshri’s First Webseries Bada Naam Karenge; says, “It is a story that resonates with our values”