Popular director Rajiv Rai is gearing up for a comeback as his directorial, Zora, is all set to release on August 8. As part of its promotions, he spoke to YouTuber Ujjawal Trivedi about his older films and how much he paid actors then. The topic arose as his latest film , Zora , was made for just Rs. 2 crores, according to Rajiv.
Rs. 10 lakh budget, recovered from just ONE single screen: Zora director Rajiv Rai shares FASCINATING trivia on Noorie aka Saiyaara of 70s – “It was financed by my father; recovered its ENTIRE cost from Mumbai’s Apsara theatre alone”
Rajiv Rai said, “In 2004, I wanted to make a film on Sardar Udham Singh in English. My script was different. My friend Raashid Rangrez helped with a lot of material. I also hired an English writer and we worked on the project for 8 years. But I couldn’t make the film as it required a lot of budget. Bahut acchi script hai.”
He also added that he came up with the idea for Zora a decade ago, “In 2015-16, I asked Raashid if he’d like to work with me on another film. He readily agreed. He’s a friend and very talented. He has also written dialogues and lyrics of Zora’s title song. I asked him how much it costs to make a film like Zora. He said, ‘Aap batao. Rs. 50 lakhs mein bhi kar sakte hai’. I didn’t like the idea as I feared ki aisa na ho ki log dekhe hi nahin film ko!”
He continued, “I couldn’t believe a film could be made on such a shoestring budget. But then I remembered working on a film as a youngster called Noorie (1979). My father (Gulshan Rai) had financed it while Yash ji was the producer. Manmohan Krishna was the director; I was an assistant on this film. Yash ji was also making Kaala Patthar (1979). He asked me which film I’d like to work on. I replied, ‘Noorie’s shoot will be completed in 28 days. Main yeh film kar leta hoon’. The whole film was made in just Rs. 10 lakhs. We recorded all songs in 3 days. Daddy asked me what I felt about the film’s prospects. I told him, ‘The film has shaped up well. Aisi film chalein toh bahut chal sakti hai’.”
Rajiv revealed, “After the film released, daddy explained to me, ‘I have recovered the investment of the film through the share I got from just one theatre, that is, Apsara Theatre, Mumbai’. He said, ‘Jo meri investment thi, ek theatre ne mujhe poori de di’! This is what you call a hit film.”
Rajiv Rai then explained, “When I made Zora, I decided to go the same route. But mine is an action film, while Noorie was a love story. I asked Raashid if we could execute the film on a limited budget, as shooting action can be costly. He told me, ‘Sab possible hai. Yahan log paisa barbaad kar rahe hai film banane mein. Filmmakers overspend on production, actor fees, etc. And the same is not visible on screen’. He further said, ‘If you want to make a Rs. 100 crores film, we can make in Rs. 15 crores. Log dekh ke bolenge ki Rs. 100 crores ki film hai’!”
He exulted, “A lot of people told me that I should not reveal that I made Zora on a shoestring budget. But if I tell the truth, then people’s expectations would be in control. If I tell you that I made the film in Rs. 200 crores, you’ll go with that mindset.”
Rajiv Rai credits Noorie as a project where he learned filmmaking, “Uss film pe maine haath saaf kar liya!”
Noorie starred Farooq Sheikh and Poonam Dhillon and this was one of their first films. Recently, the film was remembered as parallels were drawn with Noorie and Saiyaara. The latter is also backed by Yash Raj Films, stars newcomers, consists of chartbuster music and is all set to be a blockbuster.
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