Director Mudassar Aziz has a knack for making comedies that skirt the uncomfortable without ever being unsavoury. Whether it is Khel Khel Mein or Happy Bhag Jayegi, his films bring humour from situations that have no business being funny. His next, Pati Patni Aur Woh Do, is another attempt in the same genre. In a chat with Hindustan Times, the filmmaker talks about his film, comedy in general, and more.
‘Comedy should be created from situation’
Mudassar says his idea of comedy is punching up and not resorting to crude humour. “I am very particular about this—comedy should be created from the situation, not from some bhadde mazaak (crude joke),” he says, while citing examples like Khel Khel Mein, which made fun of infidelity but never made light of the situation.
Mudassar clarifies that not resorting to crude humour is a personal choice, and not a comment on that particular style of filmmaking. “Mujhe jaati taur pe pasand nahi aata (Personally, I don’t like it). I don’t consider myself big enough in stature to say whether that kind of cinema should exist or not. Those who make it, make it. But personally, I don’t like it,” he says.
The filmmaker says this sensibility stems from how his tryst with cinema began. “I grew up in Mumbai, and community watching of cinema has been a big part of my childhood. I grew up visiting Liberty Cinema, Novelty Cinema, Maratha Mandir, and Minerva. In all those films, as far as I remember, my mother and my elder sister used to go with me. And today, Masha Allah, I am the father of a daughter, so that is also a responsibility on my head. So, the film I cannot show to my family, I don’t expect to show it to outsiders; that’s not in my fitrat (nature). So maybe that’s why I don’t do it,” he explains.
‘You have to work hard on the writing table’
The director says he wants to make comedies of error where the script reigns supreme. Talking about his inspiration in the genre, the filmmaker says, “One of my favourite films is David Dhawan sahab’s Saajan Chale Sasural. How beautifully that man was trapped in the screenplay! If he hadn’t done that, what would he have done? So you have to work hard on the writing table to construct that comedy of errors. It’s not just about ‘the lie will be caught’.”
Pati Patni Aur Woh Do stars Ayushmann Khurrana, Sara Ali Khan, Rakul Preet Singh, and Wamiqa Gabbi. After the trailer dropped, many commented if a film with a female lead and three male stars would be possible. Mudassar is quick to remind that he did that a decade ago with Happy Bhag Jayegi. “I believe our society is educated, civilised, and by the grace of God, at least tolerant enough to watch, understand, and enjoy such a story,” he says.
Mudassar points out that stories with female leads and top stars being ‘second fiddle’ are not new to Hindi cinema. “I’ll remind you of a film called Chaalbaaz. Sridevi ji is leading the film beautifully, and two of the biggest superstars of that time – Sunny Deol and Rajinikanth – are almost in “second fiddle” parts. Vidya Balan was also spearheading The Dirty Picture with three men. So why wouldn’t we make them? It’s about stories. It’s about our audience returning to theatres. We need to go toward stories that connect more with them rather than some elitist class. We need to make stories on a mass level,” says the filmmaker.
Produced by T Series Films and BR Studios, Pati Patni Aur Woh Do also stars Vijay Raaz, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Vishal Vasistha, Guneet Singh, Durgesh Kumar, Ayesha Raza Mishra, Shireesh Kumar Sharma, and Deepika Amin. The film releases in theatres on May 15.