The idea was to not replicate it frame by frame: Gowtam Tinnanuri on remaking Jersey

Gowtam Tinnanuri, who directed the Telugu sleeper hit Jersey (2019), starring  Nani, has attempted to recreate the magic in Hindi with Shahid Kapoor.  

On Tuesday, during the trailer launch of the remake, also titled Jersey, the director spoke about what it takes to duplicate a film in a different language with different actors and crew members. "Doing the same film again, our idea was not to copy it frame by frame. We want to rediscover the character from scratch and tell the story to a wider audience in a different way," the director said.

He added, "My approach to directing a remake is not to tell the actors how to act and stuff like that. They are professional actors and have been acting for years so they already know that. My focus is on allowing the actor to find the character in the space of the film. I did the same with Nani when we were shooting for the Telugu film. I believe that's what helped this film to turn out to be original in its own way. I have worked on both films and for me, they seem like two different films. And I'm fortunate I can do that"

Praising Kapoor for his performance, Tinnanuri said, "If I have to pick the best moment of my career, I would pick getting an opportunity to work with Shahid sir, he is a phenomenal actor."

Jersey, which also stars Mrunal Thakur and Pankaj Kapur, will be released in theatres on 31 December 2021.