The film which is a co-production between Vishesh Films and Sony BMG is slated for release on 23 January. Suri speaks to Businessofcinema.com about his horror flick.
Excerpts:
How are Raaz and Raaz – The Mystery Continues, inter connected?
The two movies are not linked at all. RTMC is not a sequel to Raaz. No actor or character actor is the same in the two movies. The music directors are also not the same. In fact we haven’t even shot in the same locations. Mukesh Bhatt saab wanted me shoot some scenes in Ooty, but I did not shoot because the first Raaz was also shot there.
If RTMC is not a sequel to Raaz then why do the movies have same titles? Is Raaz a franchise movie?
We named this film Raaz The Mystery Continues and not Raaz 2, because this is a franchise and not a sequel. It was Mukesh saab’s idea to build a series called Raaz. He owns the brand name. The stories of films under Raaz franchise are different, but the theme of horror is the same.
I just happened to have a story idea for a horror film and it was Bhatt saab’s idea to build a Raaz franchise. Both our ideas developed simultaneously.
Since you are taking forward the Raaz franchise, what were the guidelines provided to you?
When you narrate a good idea and it fits in, then there are no dos and don’ts. The only prerequisite was that the film should belong to a supernatural and horror theme.
Does the film also have a ghost?
Of course, the film has a ghost. I want to give the audience their money’s worth. It wasn’t revealed in our first promo. It will be shown in the promos now, which will be aired next week.
How much has the success of Phoonk and 1920 reaffirmed your faith in this genre?
I started work on RTMC sixteen months back and at that time I did not even know that these films were being made. I do not base my decision on any business trend; otherwise I would be directing comedy movies now. Horror movies have always done well and even horror based TV shows have done extremely well. Kids enjoy watching horror movies. Udita also loves watching horror movies. Horror is a universal genre and we are trying to get a U/A certificate for this film. Till date in India horror has been an experimental genre and movies are made with new comers or no songs and given backdoor treatment, but horror deserves to be brought to the mainstream.
Doesn’t it the fact that you don’t have a vast choice when it comes to casting bother you?
Emraan and I have been watching horror movies together since the age of 6. In fact Emraan still watches horror films every week, even the B grade ones (laughs). When I bounced this idea to him, he instantly said that he wanted to be a part of the film. So it was impossible to make this movie without him. He was a great help also, because he has seen so many horror films.
And Kangana, she is the best actress the industry has today. She is yet to reach stardom, but her base is really strong with films like Gangster, Woh Lamhe and Fashion. So when I was going to make my most important film, I needed to make it with my most important people – Emraan and Kangana.
