A beauty like Lara Dutta is always a delight for cameramen but it’s not every day that they get to shoot her. Like this time, the actress who was in the city on Wednesday with hubby Mahesh Bhupathi (present here to promote tennis) refused to do any photo shoot because apparently she had come without her make-up man. “She won’t be wearing any make-up so no pictures, please,” her publicity manager informed well in advance.
Busy promoting her home production Chalo Dilli, which she is co-producing with hubby Mahesh, Lara engaged in a brief chat with City Express. Here’s what she had to say .
Chalo Dilli marks your debut as a producer. How different and difficult was it to shoot this film?
It was definitely a very different and difficult experience, but tremendously gratifying. It’s been fantastic eight years as an actor and it was high time I tried something different. The reason why I chose to produce Chalo Dilli is because I felt here’s a story that needs to be told. I’m clear that I’m going to produce only nice medium-budget movies, the ones that may not be of much interest to big Bollywood filmmakers. Having said that, it’s good to see that now even the big banners are looking for interesting scripts. It’s definitely a good sign and is the only way we can produce talent.
What did you find most interesting about Chalo Dilli?
As I said, I agreed to produce this film because I liked the script. The director of this film, Shashant Shah, has already proved his potential in Dasvidaniya and the music director, Gourov Dasgupta, is immensely talented too. There is no way I could have said no to it. It’s an out and out entertainer, which is written so well. The film gives me the chance to be able to perform than just being the eye candy.
Is this film also special because Mahesh is one of the producers?
Definitely. Since it’s our first collaboration it will always be special for both of us. While he took care of the business aspect, I was there to look after the creativity involved in the art of filmmaking. My production house Bheegi Basanti has already produced shows for television but it’s our first feature film. For Mahesh, it’s the first time.
How difficult was it convince Mahesh to get into filmmaking?
It wasn’t difficult at all because he has always been interested in movies.
So do we get to see him sharing screen space with you as well in Chalo Dilli?
Well, everyone’s has been speculating about it. All I can say is go and watch this movie in theatre and you’ll find the answer to this question.
You are cast opposite Vinay Pathak in Chalo Dilli, which is quite an unusual pairing. Tell us something about it
We are together in Chalo Dilli because the script demanded it. In fact the most interesting part about this film is our pairing, which adds to the humour, also present in the dialogues. I guess everyone is finding it difficult to believe that we play a couple because we belong to two different schools of acting and the kind of roles we have done so far are dissimilar. But our chemistry is one to watch out for. Also Vinay is extremely talented and it was fun shooting with him.
Why is it called Chalo Dilli?
The film is a journey of the two protagonists and it takes a closer look at our colourful interiors en route destination Delhi. That’s why this title.
What does the future hold for you and Mahesh?
While I’ll be starting the pre-production work for our next collaboration, Mahesh is getting ready for the French Open and Wimbledon. This is just the beginning and we are hoping to work on some more interesting projects in the future. But one thing is for sure that you won’t get to see Mahesh doing a full-fledged role in any of our films, not at least in the near future.
Mahesh Bhupathi’s production house Big Daddy Productions in association with Lara Dutta’s Bheegi Basanti and Eros International will present the film Chalo Dilli, which is releasing this Friday.