Imtiaz Ali ignores social media chatter around work: 'Most of them don’t go to theatres to watch our films' | Exclusive

FIlmmaker Imtiaz cassius clay is taking audiences support in clip in his next shoot, briny Vaapas Aaunga. The film is a romantic drama set during India’s partition and independence, using one of the world’s greatest tragedies as a backdrop for a love story. Ahead of the film’s release, the filmmaker sat down with HT to discuss the film, his idea of romance, and why being less active on social media is a boon for him.Imtiaz Ali on the timelessness of romanceOver the years, Imtiaz has established himself as an acclaimed teller of love stories on celluloid. His latest, Main Vaapas Aaunga, is different as it is set almost eight decades ago. But the filmmaker feels that does not change much for the characters. “I don’t think love changes (with time). Everyone discovers it in different ways. No two people will have the same opinion about love. What we get confused about is the outside mechanism of love. People didn’t text back then, but sent pigeons. They didn’t say the things that are so easily said today, but the communication was there,” says Imtiaz.The Partition has been called the greatest humanitarian crisis in human history. It is one of the darkest chapters of Indian history. To set a love story around it is challenging, as it requires impeccable sensitivity. How did Imtiaz ensure that neither narrative overshadowed the other? His answer is succinct: “By focusing on Jiya and Kinu (the protagonists). It is their personal story, and everything else is kind of out of focus.”On balancing Partition and romanceBut Imtiaz clarifies that he is not downplaying the Partition in any way. “It’s not as if we are pretending it is not happening. We are not trying to say that what is happening is pleasant in any way. We pay complete respect to it, maintain authenticity towards the incidents that happened in 1947,” he explains.But the filmmaker maintains that, at its core, Main Vaapas Aaunga is a love story that focuses on how that incident affects its protagonists. “The story is of a young boy and a young girl who are aggrieved by the Partition for a very personal reason. They are not so mature or large-hearted as to say that, actually, the division of the country is my problem. For them, what matters is the divide between them,” he says, adding that the love story also stands as a metaphor for what happened to the land. “This is the story of two people, but also the story of a country.”‘More interested in people who come to watch my film’Main Vaapas Aaunga stars Vedang Raina and Sharvari as the two lovers, alongside Diljit Dosanjh. The actor is the third lead in a story that spans two timelines. And while Vedang, Sharvari, and Imtiaz have been busy promoting the film, Diljit’s work commitments in the US have prevented him from doing so. This led to online gossip farms speculating that Diljit was not interested in promoting the film. Mention this to Imtiaz, and he simply says, “I am not very active on social media. I am more interested in people who want to come to the theatre to watch my film. Unfortunately, many people on social media don’t go to the cinema. Some actors have explained this to me in the past.”The filmmaker says he’d rather talk about what his film can do and wants to do. “I hope Main Vaapas Aaunga can also be ‘main theatre mein vaapas aaunga’. That’s our effort: to make a film that’s worthy of that,” he adds as the conversation moves to the state of Hindi films in theatres. “In this age, what I could do is to make movies that will be good enough or enticing enough for people to come (to the theatre) and watch. You can’t make any odd film and expect people to come. You have to feel that there is a special promise. Like Rahman says, ‘If there is nectar, the bees will come’,” he says, signing off.Main Vaapas Aaunga will release in theatres on June 12.