My father used to kill my mom in every film: Alia Bhatt at KIFF 2018

It was a special day for the Bhatt family as Sanjoy Nag’s film, Yours Truly, starring Soni Razdan, was being screened at the 24th Kolkata International Film Festival.

At a press conference held prior to the screening, Razdan, along with daughter Alia Bhatt and husband Mahesh Bhatt, who makes a cameo in the film, were present along with Nag, to talk about the film.

Alia was visibly excited at the fact that both her parents had acted in the film and that it was the first time she was attending a press conference for a film in which her mother is the protagonist instead of her.

When asked about the prospect of the three of them acting together, she responded by saying that they would have a blast, also revealing that amongst the three of them, her father is the most passionate actor.

The young actress spoke about watching her mother on screen much before she herself entered the field and said, “My father used to kill my mom in every film. It was so heart breaking for me. So I’m very happy that she’s not dying in this film.”

Touching upon the theme of the film, she added that it was crucial for films to tell different stories. The actress also revealed her love for Kolkata, saying that she gets warmth and love from the city, while also divulging her love for Bengali food.

Director Sanjoy Nag recounted the way in which he narrated the story to Razdan and got her on board, while discussing some challenges faced while filming certain scenes of the film. He also stressed on the fact that in his film, the audio component was as compelling an element as the visual, as he has used the voices of people off camera to create a certain atmosphere in the film.

Talking about her experience of making the film, Razdan said, “This film is very special for me as it is the first time that a film centers around me.”

Calling it an “unusual and sensitive film”, she said that the experience of making the film was doubly memorable as she had shot her first film, 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981) in Kolkata many years ago. Expressing her appreciation for the city she said, “the past and the present co-exist so beautifully in the city... I love that the people of the city take pride in their past and in their present and hopefully their future as well.”

Speaking about the theme of the film and the solitude of the character she spoke of how she connected with certain aspects of the character, saying, “It is such a nuanced character and she’s such a brave woman. I loved that about her.”

Soaking in the very special moment and warding off inquiries about Sadak 2, Mahesh Bhatt said, “This is a very special moment for me. I didn’t think that we would have a moment like this at Nandan in Kolkata.”