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Ishq Vishk (2003) completed 20 years on May 9. The film, which launched Shahid Kapoor and also co-starred Amrita Rao and Shenaz Treasury, was well-received and is fondly remembered even today. On Ishq Vishk’s 20th anniversary, Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to director Ken Ghosh about the film, his memories and a lot more.
20 Years of Ishq Vishk EXCLUSIVE: Ken Ghosh reveals that besides Shahid Kapoor, Vatsal Sheth and Sammir Dattani were also considered for the lead: “Amrita Rao would rehearse with Vatsal in the morning, Sammir in the afternoon and Shahid in the evening”
How did you get the idea to make Ishq Vishk?
It was the time when I used to do numerous dance videos for Tips. I wanted to graduate to make films. I spent a couple of months and started working on some subjects. I made a presentation of these projects and went to meet producer Ramesh Taurani ji. I also wanted Tips to be my producer as I knew my film would have a lot of music. Tips fit the bill and I liked the way they would do the promotions of their films.
Ramesh ji, however, didn’t seem interested in my ideas. The meeting was about to get over and I was told to come back if I get something interesting. I had spent three months prepping for this meeting and it was about to get over without any fruitful results! While getting up, I narrated to him a subject which was a mishmash of tales from my college days. Inevitably, it turned out to be the most honest one. The other stories were the ones which I felt were what the market wanted. It connected with Ramesh ji and he asked me to start working on it. I spent the next 1 ½ years writing it though I made most of the story on the spot (laughs)!
So can we say that you were like Rajiv Mathur, the character played by Shahid Kapoor?
No. All the characters were inspired by different friends or people I had heard of from seniors.
Who was the Sardar character inspired from? His only dialogue in the film was ‘Kya baat kar raha hai’!
(Laughs) That was pure fiction. It was just our attempt at doing something new with comedy.
Shahid Kapoor said that he was petrified when he met you and it has something to do with a chimpanzee video. Could you share more details?
Just the other day, I saw the video again! It’s a crazy one. In those days, the internet was still very new. It’ll take half a day to download a video. And once you download it, you’d watch it a hundred times. That video is about a chimpanzee sitting on a branch. He puts his finger in the ass, smells his finger and then faints! And the way he falls backwards was really funny.
It is said that you were not convinced that Shahid Kapoor could pull off the role as he was too thin…
Yes, he was too thin. I always wanted a good dancer for the role as there were several songs. And I was a dancer and in my college days, there used to be a lot of performances and shows happening. Initially, Shahid was very thin and gawky. If you see him in the video ‘Aankhon Mein Tera Hi Chehra’, you’ll know what I am saying. I told him, ‘I am looking for someone like you, who looks like you and who can act like you but with a better body’. At the end of the day, a hero should look like, well, a hero. I didn’t find anybody else and I kept searching. He utilized this time to build his body. He came back 6-8 months later. My assistant insisted that I should meet him. I was not ready as I didn’t like the idea of rejecting him again. But he assured me that he’s built his body well. I saw him and I was like, ‘Wow, that’s commendable’. What impressed me is that this boy dedicatedly worked on his body. This means he has a lot of dedication.
And then?
Amrita Rao was finalized. As for the meal lead, we had shortlisted three actors – Shahid Kapoor, Vatsal Sheth and Sammir Dattani. Those were the days when Amrita would come to my office. We would rehearse scenes with Amrita and Vatsal in the morning, then we would rehearse with Amrita and Sammir in the afternoon and with Amrita and Shahid in the evening! I would shoot them and then think about who should I go for. Finally, I decided to go for Shahid. Right after, Vatsal got signed by Abbas-Mustan for Taarzan: The Wonder Car (2004) and Sammir for Rajshri’s Uuf Kya Jaadoo Mohabbat Hai (2004).
I was happy with my choice. They were all very good actors but out of the three, Shahid was probably the least cute. And that was important for me. In the film, the girl says no to Shahid. That’s believable. But any girl rejecting Vatsal or Sammir would look like a fool! I learnt this from an experience I had when I went to see the film, Sapnay (1997), starring Kajol, Arvind Swami and Prabhudheva. While exiting the theatre, I overheard a girl say, ‘How can Kajol choose Prabhudheva? Arvind Swami is so good looking’. That stayed with me and I didn’t want a repeat of Sapnay for my film. This is how I choose the least cute boy of the three (laughs)! Having said that, Shahid was a better dancer and as an actor, he was much better.
The music of Ishq Vishk is popular even today…
I fought with Ramesh ji to have Anu Malik. I wanted R D Burman style of music. A list of music directors was given to me by Tips and the only person coming close to composing songs like Pancham da was Anu Malik. Finally, they agreed with my choice. Anu Malik and I had music sittings for 3 days in Lonavala followed by a week in Mumbai. I had also written a medley which is 5 times the work for a composer as it’s like doing 5 songs! But it was good fun.
How was the audience’s feedback? And how was the experience of visiting Liberty Cinema in Mumbai?
It was insane. It was the first time Shahid got mobbed! And we were jumping and hugging each other as we were happy to see Shahid being mobbed. We then had to run into the manager’s cabin.
What was the reaction of the critics?
It was mixed. Some liked it, some didn’t. But that always happens. Later on, the same lot called Ishq Vishk a cult film. And I wonder, didn’t you realize that when it was released (laughs)?
Ishq Vishk was released in May 2003 and in August 2004, your next film, Fida, starring Shahid Kapoor, was released. That was quite quick…
During my birthday in August 2003, two scripts were narrated to me. I locked down on Fida and fine-tuned it. Things fell in place and it was released in August 2004
After watching Kartik Aaryan-starrer Freddy (2022), did you feel that it was similar to Fida?
Oh yes. Jay Shewakramani was a part of Fida. We are very, very close. When Freddy started, he didn’t tell me the story. He simply said, ‘I want you to see Freddy when it comes out. It’ll be interesting’. In a way, Freddy is the right version of Fida because the hero wins in Freddy. In Fida, the hero loses. Hence, I call Freddy the correct Fida!
Coming back to Ishq Vishk, we don’t have such college films anymore. At one point, it was a genre in itself. Why do u think so?
For one, music channels are not just music channels anymore but are more content and lifestyle channels. What would you see in campus romance today, you’d see that in different versions as fiction on MTV and Channel V. Also, it’s not like no one is making such films anymore. Zoya Akhtar is coming up with The Archies.
Yes, but such films are few and far between…
I love working with newcomers. But due to the economic factor, the producers are not very enthusiastic about putting money behind new faces.
Ishq Vishk’s sequel will be out this year. Your thoughts?
I wish them all the best. I told them that if they mess up, I’ll come to their houses. I’ll punish them and make them kneel down! Jokes apart, I am sure they won’t mess up. They have my best wishes. They are all good, talented kids.
What’s next for you?
I am shooting a web series for Applause Entertainment.
When can we see you directing a theatrical film?
I don’t know. The web series has spoiled me! There’s so much you can do in this space. It gets boring to make films. Nevertheless, it’ll be fun to shoot a film with songs, dances, heroines turning in slow motion etc. Also, I want to do a dance musical, maybe not for the big screen but for the web.
Also Read: 20 Years of Ishq Vishk: Shahid Kapoor says, “I hold on to the innocence that I started with”; reflects on his journey
More Pages: Ishq Vishk Box Office Collection , Ishq Vishk Movie Review
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