Director Abhishek Sharma ventured into Bollywood a decade ago with the critically and commercially successful political satire Tere Bin Laden. 10 years later, he is gearing up for the Diwali release of his 6^th film Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari. Starring Manoj Bajpayee, Diljit Dosanjh and Fatima Sana Shaikh in the lead, the comedy promises to tickle your funny bones.

Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari revolves around Suraj, whose family is looking out for a perfect bride for him. However, he learns that a bride’s family has appointed Mangal Rane, a detective who investigates potential grooms. As Suraj plans revenge, Mangal makes his life hell.

As Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari is scheduled to release on November 13, Abhishek sat for an interview with PeepingMoon. In the interview, the director spoke about making only 6 films in a decade and why is it important to keep making films. He further revealed that the failure of the last film, The Zoya Factor, did break his heart but not confidence.

Excerpts from the interview:

What is the inspiration behind Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari?

The story was pitched to me by Zee. They had worked on it in-house. I loved the story. One of the key things was the grey character of a detective named Mangal Rane. I have never seen such a character before in any film. Secondly, I saw the possibility of a lot of social commentaries. Satire is something that I really love. It is a film that has a wedding, background checks and about society in general. That is what excited me and I came on board.

Your films are majorly social satires. Any plans to explore some other genre in the future?

I made Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran which was a patriotic film. I am open to all genres and currently working on something that is not a comedy. I want to make films that interest people. Comedy comes naturally to me. I am hoping to show some more dimensions.

Is it a challenge or threat for the film to release in the current pandemic era?

People are currently living in a depressing year and a family comedy is soothing. Somewhere I feel it is a win-win. Of course, the box office is important but at the core of it, our intention is to entertaining people. Nothing is more valuable than people’s laughter. Now, we all need entertainment the most. I see it from that perspective. We are bringing a clean and vulgarity-free family entertainer to the audience. It is something that everyone will be able to connect with.  

What prompted you to sign Manoj Bajpayee, a veteran with young actors Diljit Dosanjh and Fatima Sana Shaikh?

The character of Mangal Rane is the USP of the film. He is a fresh take on antagonists. He is a pain in the life of potential grooms. We needed an actor who could pull off this role and Manoj ji is the finest Indian actor and a national treasure. He was an obvious choice and we were lucky that he came on board immediately. It is a fresh character for him too.

Opposite Mangal, we needed someone with great comic timing. Diljit brings an innocence to his performance. He is a great actor. I had only seen Fatima in Dangal. I was not sure whether she will pull off the role of a Marathi mulgi. When we met and the way she looked at the character of Tulsi, I wanted to collaborate with her. All three actors have brought in freshness and have done a great job. Interestingly, they have never worked with each other before.

Abhishek Sharma with Manoj Bajpayee, Diljit Dosanjh and Fatima Sana Shaikh

Have the actors managed to bring your vision alive on the screen?

Definitely. They have gone beyond that. Not just these three actors but the entire ensemble. They are amazing actors and brought so much to the table.  

10 years and only 6 films. Are you choosing your films carefully?

Every film has its own destiny. I wanted to make Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran for an exceedingly long time. The story was in my head since 2011. Though I have made 6 films in 10 years, it is still not bad, but I would want to make more. I have had back to back releases. Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran released in 2018, The Zoya Factor came in 2019 and now, I have Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari. I hope to be more frequent. What happens that as a director, you should be evenly placed with your films to remain in touch with your audience. It is important to continue working. I do not make ad films, web shows, etc. at the same time. I do one project at a time. I want to make feature films and that is my primary target. The idea is to focus on my craft and improve. My last film The Zoya Factor did not work at the box office, but I learned a lot in terms of my craft. So, it is constant learning. As an artist, you must hone your craft and the only way to do it is by making films.

Poster of Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran

Your last film The Zoya Factor did not do well. Did it break your confidence?

It breaks your heart and not break your confidence. You see ups and downs. After the success of Tere Bin Laden and Parmanu, I saw failures like Tere Bin Laden 2 and The Zoya Factor. You learn from failure. Everything is professional at the end of the day. It is all about making films and entertaining people. Whether it translates into a box office success or not, it is not in my hand. I do not take it to my heart, but it does feel bad. But then you must move on to your next film. That is why it is important to keep making films rather than crying over your loss or celebrating your success. It is an occupational hazard.

A still from The Zoya Factor

Tere Bin Laden is considered as one of the best political satires. Are you planning to re-attempt the genre in the current political scenario?

I do not want to make it a franchise as we tried with Tere Bin Laden 2 which was a better comedy. It did not work because somewhere there is a novelty to the original film. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro is an all-time classic and cannot be made into a franchise. It is a world that cannot be replicated. Tere Bin Laden also cannot be replicated. Yes, I would like to make films of that genre and Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari has it. The kind of humour people enjoyed in Tere Bin Laden is in Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari.

Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari is clashing with Chhalaang and Laxmii will be releasing four days before. Are you worried?

No, in fact, I am incredibly happy. Right now, there is so much coming on different platforms. It is a great time after a long lockdown. After hardships, people will get to entertain themselves by watching different kinds of films, what is better than that? I am looking forward to Laxmii as Akshay Kumar is my favourite actor. I think it is more of a celebration now. Hopefully, we will be able to entertain people and take their stress away.