Kayoze Irani, an actor and now a director with his latest release Sarzameen, led by Kajol, Prithviraj Sukumaran, and Ibrahim Ali Khan, has had a special year so far.
Not only has he forayed into filmmaking, but it is a bit closer to his heart because his father, actor and director Boman Irani, too, had his directorial debut this year with The Mehta Boys.
The story of Sarzameen revolves around Colonel Vijay Menon, who plays the role of a dedicated Indian Army officer who is committed to his duty in Kashmir, to the extent that he might choose his duty over family. He combats a personal crisis when his son Harman (Ibrahim Ali Khan) becomes radicalised by terrorists. The story then unravels to highlight the conflict between Vijay's responsibility towards his nation and his love for his son, particularly after he returns as a changed man.
While Sarzameen opened up to mixed reviews, there was an array of other experiences that Kayoze Irani lived through in this film. Like they say, firsts are always special.
In an exclusive conversation with NDTV, Kayoze Irani spoke about the immense support of his parents, working with actors of different generations in his first directorial and more.
Kayoze Irani On Working With His Father: "It's A Role He Would Have Ordinarily Not Done"
The director talks at length about how supportive his family has been of this new journey. Kayoze Irani further shares that his parents, Boman Irani and Zenobia Irani, were in tears when the film ended, it was after all their son's film.
Kayoze tells, "I showed the film to my family, a month before its release. A slightly rough cut without VFX and sound. I was very nervous. At that point, I cared what my family thought about the film. I was standing outside, and after the film got over, I entered the room, and no one was getting up to meet me. So I was wondering, how bad is it? But they were honestly in tears, and they were crying. The film had an emotional ending, but they were crying because it was their son's film. So I walked up and dad hugged me."
Instagram/Kayoze Irani
He continues, "The reaction has been so strong and supportive throughout the making of the film. Not just that, but from the get-go. When I was a kid in school, I was just not great at studies, and I used to be highly dyslexic. My parents always tell me not to worry. You just get through school, and one day you're going to be a director. They genuinely believed it and told me so."
Instagram/Kayoze Irani
On Casting Boman Irani In His Directorial Debut: "He Would Have Ordinarily Never Been A Part Of It"
Boman Irani is one of the most respected artists in the film fraternity. But that was not the sole reason for son and director Kayoze Irani to cast him in Sarzameen.
Boman Irani essayed the role of Lt. General I.S. Kanwar in the film, though a small role, Kayoze states that he wanted him in the film as a "good luck charm".
Kayoze adds, "I have directed him before. We have done a few AD films together. At times when you get on set, the lines are a little blurry because that's your father there, but there's also a very senior actor there. And for him, there is a son and a debutant director there. He was always supportive and came up with ideas and suggestions. And honestly, it's a role that he would not have ordinarily done. It's a small role, but I wanted him there as my good luck charm and with my mother around. There's no way he could have said no to me."
A Varied Cast: A '90s Superstar, The South Indian Heartthrob, And A Budding New Talent - Kajol, Prithviraj, Ibrahim
What's fascinating to note in the casting of Sarzameen is the interesting mix of actors. While Kajol is the reigning queen of the '90s who continues to do diverse projects in the current era of stars, Prithviraj Sukumaran has a massive fanbase in the South. As for Ibrahim, he's on the brink of carving a niche for himself, one step at a time.
Kayoze Irani agrees as he reiterates that it is the differences that make the Sarzameen cast so young and fresh.
Kayoze recalls his experience, "Kajol ma'am is instinctive. We discussed every scene. If we are shooting three scenes a day, we'll discuss the scene beforehand in her vanity van, and she comes on to set, and we know where we want to take the scene. As for Prithivi, I spent a lot of time with him. I went to coaching and I was in his house. We discussed fatherhood and Army life because he's from a scenic school. He was so well prepared."
"Ibrahim was facing the camera for the first time. We shot for Sarzameen before Nadaaniyan. We did about six months of workshops, and what worked for me, with Ibrahim, was that we were able to tap into Ibrahim as a person, and he brought that into Harman, the character," concludes Kayoze.
On The Criticism Received For The Twist In Kajol's Character Arc
Kayoze Irani is at his candid best when he acknowledges the mixed reviews of the film. While he agrees that some critical reviews were unexpected, on the contrary, he also takes it in his stride that some points were fair enough.
One of the most debatable scenes in Sarzameen is when the audience gets to know about a twist in Kajol's character Mehr in the film. Towards the climax, it is revealed that Mehr was a double agent who was originally sent on a mission to spy on the Indian Army. But she fell in love with Vijay (Prithviraj Sukumaran) and had a child. Other than the base storyline of the conflict between Vijay and his son Harman (Saif Ali Khan), Kajol's role also has a moment in the latter half of the film.
Kayoze Irani reacts to the feedback, "We went out to make this film as a front-footed entertainer. We wanted the twist to be a shocker. Some viewers have reacted strongly to the twist, while some have said that was the moment of the film. And yes, there is a certain section that has not reacted to it. Now, in hindsight, would I have done things differently? I don't know. Would I have tried to see it differently? I don't know because it's a very thin line there."
"We can learn from what we did, and hopefully we can put it into our next project. But as of now, I feel that this is the step we decided to take, and we wanted this to be so. It was always part of the script from day one. I stand by it. If people are divided on it, I will work harder, and the next time, try to have everyone on board saying that they liked it," states Kayoze.
On a concluding note, Kayoze Irani says that he has received overwhelming love and messages from people. From Jalandar to Bhopal, his Instagram DMs are flooded with appreciation, and for that, he is grateful and ecstatic. He does add that he was worried about what if it does not work?
But as of now, all he has to say about Sarzameen and a the cocktail of appreciation and constructive criticism is, "I'm touched", and onto the next.