Deepak Tijori is all set to release his thriller, Tipppsy, this Friday, May 10. The actor-director was racing against time to get the film to cinemas and yet, he spoke exclusively with Bollywood Hungama about the film and a lot more.
You got an interesting title for your film. Usually, we hear that the title of the filmmaker’s choice is not available. In the case of Tipppsy, what was the scene like?
The title was available. It’s always been with me. Back in 2003, I had registered a title, Oops. Nobody even knew what ‘Oops’ meant. At that time, I was the only one who thought of the title. Similarly, with Tipppsy, nobody even bothered. In between, I even forgot to renew the title. There was a phase when I was wondering when this film would be made and when I’d shoot it. I got the letter from Indian Motion Pictures’ Producers’ Association (IMMPA) and I didn’t bother to act on it. Then, when I went to the association office to renew, I asked if it was still available. The lady replied, ‘Deepak ji, aap bahut kismat waale ho (laughs). Kisi ne yeh title ke baare mein socha bhi nahin. Le lijiye aap’!
You not just directed but also wrote the film. It’s often difficult to write a suspense thriller; many times, writing goes haywire in the second or third act. What steps did you take to get the second half right?
I have always been an avid watcher of thrillers. I love the genre. From my filmography, Abbas-Mustan’s Khiladi (1992) is one of my favourite films. I learned from them how they write the script and execute it. Also, I have been watching a lot of Hollywood, French and Spanish cinema. When I decided to make a whodunit, I had to put a lot of thinking into it. It is not a one-night job. It took me a couple of weeks to crack the script. Two of my friends, editor Ballu Saluja and my associate producer and good friend Ramesh Sharma were my bouncing board. I’d tell them, ‘Yeh kahaani hai. What do you think, isme kya ho sakta hai? Murderer kaun ho sakta hai?’. They made a few guesses and I made sure those characters didn’t turn out to be the murderer (laughs)! So, it’s really important to have some bouncing boards. Eventually, it turned out to be a wonderful experience writing Tipppsy and making it was another incredible experience.
The casting process was a challenge for you. I believe not all these girls were the original choices…
Before COVID, Esha Gupta and Daisy Shah were a part of the film. We even shot a promotional song with them. You’ll even see their glimpses in the film. Sadly, after COVID, things went haywire. Esha also went to Madrid, and she almost got settled over there. In fact, just two days ago, I coincidentally met her. We hugged each other and she said, ‘Sir, aapne bana li woh film’ (laughs)! I assured her, ‘Tum gaane mein abhi bhi ho. Don’t worry!’
I also faced problems in shooting in London. In 2020, I couldn’t go there due to the first lockdown. Then, in late 2021, Omicron derailed our plans. I told producer Raju Chadha ji, ‘Mujhe London ka kuch samaj nahin aa raha. Kundli mein gadbad hai’. I asked him if it would be fine if we set the film in Mumbai and Goa. He was totally in support of it. He said, ‘Deepak ji, aapki kahaani acchi hai. Karte hai shoot’.
Then, we started looking for girls that would fit the actors whom we had signed earlier. This is how I found Natasha Suri and Sonia Birje; they were just bang on.
I was fortunate to have these actresses who absolutely represented my characters. The girls look gorgeous but when you watch the film, you will see definite characters in them. Kainaat Arora is playing a Haryanvi. She must have not imagined that she’d play something of this sort. She went out of the way and hired a diction coach, without even informing me. Also, it was an afterthought that she should be a Haryanvi. This is because my life partner, Mandeep Kaur Sandhu, is also a Haryanvi. Suvidha Mall had written the dialogues already and with the help of Mandeep, I changed it to Haryanvi. Mandeep is also acting in the film; she is the lady cop.
So, Kainaat went all out. During the workshop, the rest of the girls were like ‘Arre yeh kya badbad kar rahi hai’! Then, Nazia Hussain’s character is a tomboy. It’s a strong part. Alankrita Sahai, meanwhile, is very cute; it is not how Alankrita is in real life at all. Hence, I was taken aback by all the girls and how they performed.
How did you come on board as an actor?
I had approached several actors, but many had date issues. Murli Sharma is a very good friend. But he’s a very busy man down South. Yet, he agreed. But when he tried to look at the dates, he realized that it was not possible. Then, I approached Dev Gill as he would have made for a great cop. I even signed him. I began the shoot. Then, Alankrita had an accident when she jumped into the swimming pool from a height with Sonia Birje. Due to the injury, the doctor strictly told her to be away from lights and cameras for three days. I called Dev’s secretary to ask him if we could shift his dates slightly. He told me that it wouldn’t be possible at all as he had commitments down South. With no other choice, I decided to take advantage of being an actor and donned the police uniform (laughs)! I would call it a blessing in disguise that I got a chance to be back on screen in a nice and powerful role.
Often directors claim that earlier it was easier to have access to actors. But nowadays, one has to pass through their agencies and secretaries, and it makes the whole process cumbersome. Have you gone through similar experiences?
I guess God has been kind, fortunately. I have been an actor before. Actors like Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan have agencies. But since I have worked with these senior actors, I won’t have to go through these agencies if I want to access them. Whenever we meet, we have a lot of respect and love for each other. For instance, I bumped into Shah Rukh Khan sometime back; we still hug and meet like before. Aamir bhi pyaar se milega.
But if I had to approach the newer lot of actors like Ranveer Singh or Ranbir Kapoor, I’d definitely have to go through the chain. I don’t really blame the actors for it because of the amount of fake producers and fake financiers that roam around in the city. It’s difficult to know who is right and who is not. Hence, a filter is necessary. The time has changed. There are some people who claim they’ll finance our film. They meet the actor, click pictures and then they disappear! They use the image to claim ‘Dekho, main Deepak Tijori ke saath film bana raha hoon’. This has happened even with someone like me, who doesn’t work as often. Imagine what it must be like for Ranbir Kapoor and Ranveer Singh. Hence, it’s fair for them to have a team that sorts out things for them.
More Pages: Tipppsy Box Office Collection
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