To many, Vatsal Sheth is the actor, many remember as Raj in Taarzan: The Wonder Car. To the team behind Happy Birthday Joshi, he is the writer, the producer, the creative head, and the director. But to himself, he is simply someone who had a story that deserved to be told and who was willing to wait years for the right moment to tell it. Inspired by the mystery of the world’s first computer virus, powered by AI, and backed by Ajay Devgn and Danish Devgn’s LVS Studios, Happy Birthday Joshi (HBJ) is a deeply personal film about bullying and resilience that is, quite simply, anything but ordinary. CE caught up with Vatsal to talk about the film, the process, and what drives him forward
Excerpts
What convinced you to tell this story?
I have known about this virus since my school days. It was always quite intriguing to me and I always wanted to tell this story to the world. Somehow things materialised now. We got some amazing responses. Mapping the micro emotions of the characters was the most
difficult part in AI. But somehow we cracked it. I have a very good team and I’m proud of how we managed to capture what Joshi and the other characters were feeling. The story was always the most important part. Nobody wanted to make it in mainstream cinema, and when I started Prismix Studios in 2025, I thought this is my opportunity to make it. I had never written the story thinking it would be made on AI.
What kind of research went into building the world of the film?
The research was very limited because unfortunately nobody knows who actually made the virus or why. I tried to dig deep and reach out to people, but it was always a dead end. That is why, at the end of the film, we give a disclaimer — if you know who actually did it, please come forward. After this, the viruses were actually called viruses. Whoever made it was really sharp and intelligent. The writing evolved over time, but the primary story and core remained the same.
How involved were Ajay Devgn and the LVS Studios team?
Rajesh sir and Danish are co-producers. Rajesh sir has been integral, from story sessions to edit sessions. Ajay sir has been really involved. I am very fortunate to have him as a mentor, spending so much time on a short film like this.
You made your Telugu debut with Adipurush. How was that experience?
Adipurush was actually one of my toughest roles, where I played the character of Indrajit. I had done a lot of preparation, whatever I was asked for by the makers, by the director, the producers. I gave my 100 percent to it. The experience was amazing. We actually shot in Hindi and was dubbed eventually in Telugu. So for me, I was just doing another Hindi film.
A memory while shooting in Hyderabad?
I have a lot of memories. In fact, my first film Taarzan: The Wonder Car was shot in Hyderabad. Many of my films have been shot in Hyderabad. Hyderabad is one of the very good cities. I have a few actor friends in Hyderabad. Hyderabad people are warm. I would love to do more Telugu films
What makes you say yes to a project?
The story and the character being offered. Who is making it and who the other actors are followed after. Right now I have a Gujarati comedy, Firki with Johnny Lever sir and Vijay Raaz sir, I’m very excited about it.