Sriram Raghavan’s films are a genre of their own, more so after the critical and commercial success of his last film, Andhadhun (2018). As a result, the expectations are tremendous from his next thriller, Merry Christmas, starring Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi. Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke with him in his beautiful, vintage-themed office about Merry Christmas and a lot more.
Merry Christmas will have a Hindi as well as a Tamil trailer. Interestingly, the Tamil trailer is cut differently when usually, the norm is that the trailers of both versions feature the same scenes…
That’s what I wanted to avoid. I have changed the supporting cast in the Tamil version. If we would have had the same poster and trailer, it would have looked like a dubbed film. Story-wise, it’s the same film but I wanted people down South to get the feeling that it’s a Tamil film. Hence, we didn’t unveil the teaser. Instead, we released two trailers – one in Hindi and the other in Tamil.
It must be difficult to cut the trailer of a suspense thriller. After all, you can’t show much and yet, you need to excite the audience…
It is indeed difficult to cut the trailer of a thriller. I don’t know how others do. It took us a few months to lock the trailer. We kept rejecting and adding shots and checking with people. And we wanted to give viewers a feeling that they should be excited to immediately check out the film in the theatre. Otherwise, with several films, you see the trailer and you feel ‘I’ll see this film one day’!
Was it your idea to use the haunting version of the adorable song ‘We Wish You A Very Merry Christmas’?
No idea is solely mine. A whole lot of people are involved in the film – my writers, DOP etc. Since it was Christmas, the song was incorporated. When I work on a script, I play a list of songs. Hence, I used to keep listening to Christmas songs while writing this film. We have a sequence in the film where carols are being sung.
You have a love for old films and songs and it is reflected in your films. In Johnny Gaddaar (2007), the Parwana angle was superb. The same goes for Anil Dhawan’s track in Andhadhun. In Merry Christmas, one can see ‘Ichak Dana Beechak Dana’ mentioned in the fair sequence…
I was a kid when I saw these movies. Those films were not old then. They were young and so was I (smiles)! Maybe that's the reason. However, it’s getting more and more expensive to use old songs. Slowly, this trend might stop simply because we can’t afford their rights.
Another common factor in most of your films is that the stories are set in Pune. You are the only Bollywood filmmaker who has filmed extensively there. I believe it stems from the fact that you grew up in Pune…
Yes, I completed my school and college education in Pune. Also, I did a course in FTII. All these cinema halls you see (points to the photographs on the wall in his office) are all located in Pune. All these theatres have changed now. In Rahul, I saw Enter The Dragon (1973). However, Merry Christmas film is not set in Pune. We tried to do so and attempted to do the recce. But since it was Covid time, no one was comfortable when we approached them to check out their society. Moreover, I was looking for a place where Christmas was celebrated in all its glory. Kolkata would have been great but I had stars in this film. It would have been difficult to shoot with them in places like Park Street. Eventually, we shot the film in Mumbai and shot some portions in the set.
You opted for a fresh cast…
Yes, I wanted actors who have not been paired opposite each other. When I thought of this combination, many were in disbelief. But I realized that there would be a curiosity about the casting. Both are quite fab in the film. We have always known Vijay as a good actor. But Katrina normally has the notion of being known more for her glamour and glamorous roles. She had met me before Andhadhun and told me that she wanted to do my kind of movies. She told me that I should keep her in mind and I agreed to do so. While scripting Merry Christmas, I decided to ask her. It’s a great role for both of them.
In a recent interaction, she said that she was distraught that the film was being shot in Tamil and faced a harrowing time…
Well, it’s damn tough to speak Tamil. We tortured her (laughs) but she managed.
Did you think of going for a bi-lingual version due to Vijay Sethupathi’s casting?
Yes, but I would have not done it in normal circumstances. A couple of our schedules kept getting pushed due to Covid restrictions. Hence, it became a costly affair (to have long gaps between schedules). This is when we thought, 'What if we also shoot the film in Tamil?'. After all, Vijay has got a certain market there.
And not just Katrina, it was tough for us as well. You have to shoot a scene in Hindi and then shoot it in Tamil. You can’t go shot-by-shot. Katrina also realized that she should do the tough scenes in Hindi first, take a break, sit with the Tamil coach and re-shoot in Tamil. She knew the emotional and other requirements of the scene by then as she had shot it in Hindi. I would then tell her to listen to the lines in Tamil and deliver. She also had to understand her co-actor’s lines for cues. She was quite sporting though I don’t know, maybe at home, she must be giving us gaalis!
Vijay Sethupathi’s last film Jawan (2023) also had a Christmas connection. Vikram Rathore (Shah Rukh Khan) calls him a Santa Claus due to his look…
(Laughs) When we were shooting for Merry Christmas, he told me about this scene in Jawan. For me, what made me happy at first was that Vijay starred in a big Hindi film. That way, more people would know him. And coming back to your question, the Santa in Jawan and this Santa are different!
Nowadays, it is risky to make suspense films as people might shoot an important scene on their phones and upload it on Twitter or Instagram stories. Does this trend worry you?
I have to have that worry. At the same time, you can’t stop it. I don’t know what joy people get by putting up an important scene on social media. All you can think is what would be the good punishment for such people? I guess the apt punishment should be that they should be shown all the films ulta!
Most actors today express the desire to work with you. Do you feel apprehensive that a lot is expected from you now?
Not exactly in that sense. Until you have not had success, you can quietly do your thing. Here, there’s an anticipation which is good. I am a big student of Alfred Hitchcock. Every movie of his was not the same as the previous one. One of my favourite films of his, Vertigo (1958), was not a success when it first came out. Then, over the years, it became a success. Then, even Hitchcock was not sure whether Psycho (1960) is going to work. And it became one of his biggest grossers.
I guess it has happened more so after Andhadhun. At the box office, it did exceedingly well, going beyond everyone's expectations…
That is there but nowadays, there’s too much discussion about box office and trade. I try to be a little away and be zen about it.
What would you do on the day Merry Chrismtas releases? Do you visit cinema halls to check out reactions?
I’d love to do that but a lot of people in Mumbai know me. Hence, it becomes a little difficult. I remember during Badlapur, I used to go to PVR Juhu and stand in the aisle to see the reaction in the opening scene. When the child in the film falls down, I just wanted to see how the audience would react. So, I do these cheap thrills!
Do you like promotions?
It’s not my cup of tea. I get terrified of it. It’s just that I am not good at blowing my own trumpet.
In today’s times, spy films are ruling the roost. You attempted a spy film 11 years ago, Agent Vinod (2012) but sadly, it didn’t work. If you make Agent Vinod today, what would you do differently?
I would have spent two more months on post-production. Every one of us was in a rush. We had announced the release date. We were shooting for it until 15 days before release. Normally, when you edit a film, you watch it everyday. But I saw the complete film 10 days before release, during the Censor process. I felt it was a little exhausting. But at the same time, it had songs, big stars etc. and I felt we would be able to get away.
Not many know that your brother Sridhar Raghavan has written all the recent blockbuster films like War (2019), Pathaan (2023), Tiger 3 (2023) etc. Do you discuss each other’s films when it is in the scripting stage?
He doesn’t talk much about his films because I think with YRF, he must have signed a non-disclosure agreement. Meanwhile, he is one of the first ones to whom I narrate the story and ask him for his feedback. He’s a writer; so, I also get inputs.
Just like how YRF Spy Universe was created, would you like to go for a Sriram Cinematic Universe, featuring Varun Dhawan from Badlapur and Katrina from Merry Christmas?
(Smiles and shakes his head) No, I don’t think so.
Johnny Gaddaar (2007) had a James Hadley Chase touch. He wrote more than 50 novels. Have you ever thought of making films based on his novels?
Johnny Gaddaar was not based on any of his novels. The basic plot of the film was drawn from different sources, including James Hadley Chase novels but the treatment was mine. Chase novels have all the elements of betrayal, deception, con etc. It was a staple for us when we were in school. I don’t know if it has the same impact on today’s readers. In our times, with all those sexy covers, it was a rage!
You made a documentary-of-sorts, Raman Raghav during your early days. Now that such films have an audience on OTT, do you plan to make more such films?
It was a docu-drama. Raghubir Yadav was the main actor and he played Raman Raghav. I had read about the man in magazines and books and hence, what was depicted in the film was largely true. The then Bombay Police also co-operated with us as they wanted to highlight their successful cases. It was for a video magazine in the early 90s. The producer, a builder, however, never sold it. One day, I plan to put it on YouTube.
How can we see it?
We do have screenings once in a while in places like Harkat. I don’t have the rights to put it anywhere. It doesn’t belong to me. I’d love to put it out as a lot of people want to see it. Raghubir is superb in the film.
Your debut directorial, Ek Hasina Thi (2004) was released on January 16. In other words, you’ll complete 20 years in the same week that Merry Christmas releases on January 12, 2024…
(Smiles) In fact, when I first met Vijay Sethupathi, he told me that his birthday is on January 16. I told him about the date’s significance. So, hopefully, this should be a good thing for Merry Christmas.
Do you have any plans to celebrate your 20th anniversary as a director?
I don’t know. Somebody suggested that I should have a screening. I’ll try. But Ek Hasina Thi was shot on film. I don’t know kiske paas negative hai. DCP bana bhi hoga ya nahin, I don’t know. But I’ll ask people to find out.
You are currently working on Ekkees. It’s very different from your usual films and it’s also a film you have been trying to make for a long time…
Yes, and because of it, Merry Christmas got delayed. Then I decided to finish Merry Christmas first. I have begun shooting for it. It’s a war film. Normally, it is not my kind of subject. It’s based on the true story of an army officer and hence, you need to be very, very careful with the details. But this story touched me a lot, especially the aspect about the boy and his father. Hence, I decided to try it out. As a filmmaker, one should be as versatile as possible.
Not many people know that you worked at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and at one point, you wanted to make a sci-fi film. Would you like to explore this genre someday?
I worked in ISRO after graduating from FTII. But I had nothing to do with the great stuff that ISRO is doing. Ours was a small documentary unit within ISRO. That’s the place where television first started. We used to air education programmers for villagers in that area. I was into that sort of work. I had nothing to do with space, though it sounds great to say that I work in ISRO! And yes, I do love sci-fi films. I had a story which was ‘concept sci-fi’ rather than something like Star Wars. It was a movie called Happy Birthday but it never got materialized.
More Pages: Merry Christmas Box Office Collection , Merry Christmas Movie Review
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