‘Sunny Deol called, said do a film with me’: Sriram Raghavan

Sriram Raghavan got a call from Sunny Deol to collaborate on a film but that is not how he writes his stories.

Multiple actors over recent years have listed Sriram Raghavan as one of the directors they would like to work with. The director is famous for thrillers like Badlapur, Andhadhun and most recently, delivered another critically acclaimed film, Merry Christmas. Now, he has revealed another big Bollywood name who wishes to collaborate with him someday.

Sriram Raghavan’s process

In a recent interview with Indian Express, Sriram was asked about writing a role with an actor already in his mind. The director said that such a process has not always worked for him. He even casually name-dropped Sunny Deol. “Every time I have written keeping an actor in mind, I have not been able to come up with a good enough script. So, I now start writing and mid-way think of who we can cast. Many years ago, after watching Raman Raghav, A City, A Killer (1991), a docu-drama by me, Sunny Deol had called to say ‘do a film with me’. He was at the peak of his career then. I kept writing and rejecting the ideas myself. I would like to do a film with him. There are also others on my list,” he said.

Money doesn’t matter?

Merry Christmas stars Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi. It is a murder mystery that is set on Christmas Eve in Mumbai. While the film got rave reviews, the film wasn’t a blockbuster at the ticket windows. It collected ₹14.7 crore over its first week in theatres. Speaking about money matters, Sriram said, “For them (actors), the number validates their star value. I don’t have that pressure. If Andhadhun did X business, I am not starting my next film thinking that now I have to do more than X. One may make a huge extravaganza but the collection might still not be great. If you have a big star, one assumes that you get a good opening. But nowadays, the word spreads within the first couple of days.”

“There is a great line by Quentin Tarantino regarding numbers that’s etched in my mind. He says that in the grand scheme of things, opening weekend is the least important time in the film’s life. A film takes more than a year to make. So, three days on a weekend are not the most important days for me or Quentin (laughs). Though for many it is,” he said.

Sunny Deol was last seen in Gadar 2, which did great business and was one of last year’s biggest hits.