• 6 months ago
15 Years of Zoya Akhtar: PVR To Launch Retrospective Film Festival Of The Filmmaker's Work | 9XM

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Join us as we celebrate 15 incredible years of Zoya Akhtar's filmmaking journey! ✨ PVR Cinemas is proud to launch a retrospective film festival, showcasing the iconic works of one of Bollywood's most talented directors. From her debut film to her latest masterpieces, experience the magic of Zoya Akhtar's storytelling on the big screen. Don't miss this special event, brought to you by 9XM, where fans can relive their favorite moments and explore behind-the-scenes insights. Subscribe for more updates and exclusive content!


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Transcript
00:00Bye!
00:30Sir, Farhan sir is here
00:32Farhan sir, stop here
00:34Ma'am, come here
00:38All of you, look here
00:40Turn left
00:42Left side
00:44Wait
00:50Ma'am, sorry
00:52Farhan sir, wait
01:00Ma'am, stop here
01:06Wait
01:08You go
01:16Yes ma'am
01:26Thank you
01:30most amazing Reema Kakhti, ladies and gentlemen, and of course, the versatile Mr. Farhan Akhtar.
01:37Welcome, welcome. Yes. So, as I said, you know, welcome to the grand opening of this
01:46iconic place. You know, it is only fair, you know, we always talk about our culture, we
01:51take pride. Reema Kakhti, zordaar thaliaan, Mr. Farhan Akhtar. Sanjay sir, please, kindly
01:57do the honours. Well, the moment is here.
02:27Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.
02:55Thank you so much. We'll have a quick photo-op.
03:02Come close, come close. Thank you. Of course, thanking the Almighty for all the positivity,
03:27all the hope, all the prosperity, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you so much. Kindly be seated.
03:45We take the centre stage, of course. Ajay sir, we'll start with you. You know, first
04:05of all, all our friends from the media, they are here. We have these superstars here at
04:09this grand launch. So, what do you have to say to all the people who've come to attend
04:14this grand event here? Afternoon, everyone. Nothing excites me more than seeing a cinema
04:22full, although it's not completely full just now, and opening of a new property, this iconic
04:28property. First of all, thank you, everyone, for taking the time out. Sanjay ji, thank
04:33you for your support. Thank you very much. Thanks, Zoya, for being here, Reema, Farhan,
04:55because you guys have made the opening special. And, you know, this cinema is, I thought,
05:01because of its location and everything, it's in Bombay, Juhu, I wanted this to be a tribute
05:06to the Hindi film industry. It's going to be showing a lot of festivals, retrospective
05:10festivals, and I'm so happy that you guys have agreed to show your fabulous bouquet
05:15of films. And it's going to start on the 7th, and I'm really excited about it. It's going
05:19to show new movies as well. But at the same time, I think that's what I've told the boys,
05:23that we'll always have festivals here, maybe two shows, one show, one or two, so that it,
05:29you know, brings back people. You know, these movies are available everywhere, but yet to
05:33see them on the big screen, I think it's very exciting. And even the response that we've
05:39got for so many movies of yours, that we want to see it back on the big screen, really excited
05:44about that. So that's going to be the USP of the cinema.
05:47Thank you so much, sir, for sharing that. Mr. Gupta, over to you, you know, talking
05:50about this partnership with BBR, INOX, Limited, and Lido, you know, coming together. It's
05:56going to be out of the world. Talk to us about that.
05:58Hello. Good afternoon, everyone. So we are into this single screen business since 45,
06:0550 years. And I have three theaters in Bombay. Lido was always close to our heart. And to
06:13be associated with a partner like BBR is like a feather on the cap, nothing better than
06:19this. And what I could think or imagine, he's done beyond that. So it's a privilege to be
06:27a part of BBR family. Thank you, sir.
06:31Thank you so much, sir. So we're coming to you completing 15 years in the industry. Ladies
06:36and gentlemen, a big round of applause for this wonderful, wonderful filmmaker. You know,
06:41we are here to celebrate this iconic theater at the same time, your journey, what do you
06:46have to say?
06:47It's very exciting. This theater was a single screen and Farhan and me were in a school
06:53down the road. So we crossed this theater in and out every day. And to actually be here
07:01and be a filmmaker for the last 15 years, it's almost surreal. Today is also nine years
07:08of Dil Dhadak Nido. And I want to thank Mr. Gupta and Mr. Bijli for giving us the best
07:14birthday gift, which is playing our films back on the screen. It really takes something
07:20to actually develop a space and to be able to play films that have happened to put festival
07:26films out and to keep the culture of cinema going. We are the capital of the film industry
07:33here and to be able for them to enable this and to keep the youth that's coming to be
07:39able to watch older films that maybe have been before their time on the big screen is
07:44a real gift. So I want to thank the two of them.
07:47Thank you so much for sharing that. Reema, moving on to you, you know, talking about
07:51this maverick filmmaker here and this journey that we are all set to celebrate with this
07:57amazing film festival. Your thoughts on that?
08:04You know, I think that Zoya has been, you know, one of the defining voices of modern
08:12Hindi cinema. And what makes her, I think, so special to me is, you know, whatever she's
08:19doing, whatever the idea or the genre is, her take on it, you know, and she reads a
08:26lot, keeps herself informed, is constantly searching and then uses all of that and her
08:33mind in her work. And I think that's what sets her apart.
08:37Thank you so much. Farhan, this one's for you. Please tell us a little bit. We're celebrating
08:41Zoya here, her entire journey of 15 years. In fact, it's the 15th year of Luck By Chance.
08:48So what are your thoughts at this time?
08:50Good afternoon. Before I answer your question, I want to quickly say a couple of thank yous.
08:55I'd like to say thank you to Ajay for really, really being a torchbearer when it comes to
09:02encouraging people to come into theatres, making it a pleasurable experience, making
09:07it a comfortable experience, something that's memorable. It's time well spent, money well
09:12spent. And you really, really, Ajay, have been doing a great job with it for years now.
09:17We met during the pandemic, if you remember. We met on some island in Maldives or something
09:21somewhere. And we were talking, people will come back to the theatre. Everyone is used
09:25to watching films on TV. And it's so heartening to see that in what numbers people have come
09:30back to a theatre. Because this is something that I think Indian people culturally just
09:34enjoy. You know, coming to a movie theatre, sitting with strangers, experiencing something
09:39together. And again, just Ajay, PVR, you, all of you, your entire team, you're doing
09:44an incredible job. Sanjay ji, you said this theatre is very close to your heart. It was
09:50very close to our school. So we are very, very thankful for that. I've seen, I saw Gandhi
09:57here. I saw Rikki-Tikki-Tavi here. You know, so some very interesting films our school
10:01brought us to see. So I have very, very fond memories of this place. And it's very nice
10:05to and very nostalgic to be back here. And now to answer your question. I'm very happy
10:11that Zoya has taken so much inspiration from her younger brother over the last few years.
10:16I completely agree with Reema, that Zoya is a very distinct voice in today's landscape
10:26of filmmakers. She has her own style. She has her own way of writing, of directing,
10:33of presenting a film, which is very, very unique to her. And honestly, as a collaborator,
10:37as a producer, as her brother, and as somebody who's a flag bearer for her wherever she goes,
10:42I couldn't be happier or prouder. Thank you so much.
10:45I also want to say that there's someone missing here without whom this journey wouldn't have
10:50started. And that's Ritesh Sidhwani. He couldn't be here today. But he's really backed every
10:56crazy idea we've had, and with full gusto. And I miss him here right now. And I want
11:01to thank him, as Farhan and Reema, without whom I wouldn't have these movies. So thank
11:06you.
11:07Thank you so much. Ajay sir, the next question is for you. You know, if you were to talk
11:11to us about this property, the iconic property, you know, it's like legacy of Indian cinema,
11:16you're taking it forward. Why Lido? Why did you say that I want to revamp this particular
11:22property?
11:23I think because all kinds of cinemas, opportunities are still available in India. Still, we have
11:285000 single screens. And those single screens have got 1000 seats each. So that's a lot
11:34of capacity there. And plus, you have modern day malls and shopping centers. So I'm not
11:40hung up, it has to be a shopping center, it has to be a mall, it has to be a location
11:45where cinema is iconic. And if there's an opportunity, we get that opportunity. And
11:50the demographic is there to watch movies in that place and can create something different.
11:56Like in this particular cinema, we've only got 326 seats. But when I first saw the layout,
12:01the legroom seat, which was very small, you know, less, it was about 1100 millimeter by
12:05550 millimeter. Then I spoke to Sanjay ji, and I said, okay, let's do 1500 millimeter
12:11and 750 millimeter width and 1500. So I have a, you know, swivel table and all so that
12:18it can become slightly different to all other cinemas, a lot of cinemas here. And this doesn't
12:27have anything other than the cinema to attract people. It doesn't have, you know, food or
12:32shopping or anything like that is standalone. So standalone, I wanted to make it very unique.
12:38And so that's, that's what it is. So hopefully, people will like it. So it's not just the
12:42content, which will be obviously, that's the main driver to get people in. But at the same
12:46time, seeds, carpets, you know, decor, art decor, bring that little nostalgia back. So,
12:53you know, perhaps people will like it. So I'm hoping people like it.
12:57I didn't mean to eavesdrop. But here I was listening, someone was saying it's very comfortable.
13:01So now we know how comfortable all this is. So are we like planning? Are there like plans
13:05to develop this particular property as an art and cultural hub for the entertainment
13:12industry?
13:13Why not? But jagah nahi hai. If I had more space, there was somebody who wanted me to
13:17do something called Movizium, like bring posters and lots of things. But jagah nahi hai. We
13:21only have space for three screens and enough space for the foyer areas and car parking
13:27because you know, all the old cinematograph act and building bylaws and NBC code had to
13:32be followed. But other than that, through content, I can do that through movies like
13:36the festival that we're doing now. We played Manthan last week, not here, but somewhere
13:42else. So all these old films are coming back and you know, people are enjoying the festivals.
13:48As Farhan said, you know, the habit of people to go out and watch movies in the big screen
13:53is not going to go away anywhere. Of course, we had a body blow during COVID. Toh kaafi
13:59kuch hua, kaafi disruption hui. But at the same time, I think it's like Zomato or having
14:05a kitchen at home. But at the same time, people are not that straight jacketed that they only
14:09do one thing. Ghar bhe bhi dekhenge jab dekhna hoga TV shows aur movie bhi dekhenge aat hafte
14:14ke baad. But bahar bhi jayenge. So that's where we fit in. That if they want to go out, it
14:19must be an incredible experience. But this, I can't get it home. That's what I'm, that's
14:24all we are doing.
14:27Can I just quickly add something because I think this is very important when you're asking
14:31him about why Lido. You know, the thing is that whenever we, at least in our country,
14:38there is no concept of finding a street address or telling somebody a road name. Wo kabhi
14:43hota hi nahi. Toh aap hamesha landmark pakadte hoon. Toh yeh area ka landmark Lido hai. Toh
14:48aapko kisi ko bolna hai yahaan par aana. Ab Lido janate hoon? Usse do building aagey
14:51right pe aap jaake turn kar lo. So Lido is a landmark. So anybody who knows about this
14:55area of Juhu knows where Lido is.
14:59Thank you so much. Sir.
15:00In fact, Javed uncle, few months back in Sarega Maapa had said ki ek theatre hua karta tha
15:06Lido. Main wahan se guzarta tha. Phir wo director mujhe leke, hum log story sunne jaate
15:12thi.
15:13So yeh inspiration sir, wahin se toh nahi aa rahi thi?
15:15Absolutely.
15:16Please, please tell us about your journey with Lido. Because yeh bade dil ke khaas karib
15:21hai aapke maine suna hai.
15:23So this is the third life of Lido. So we've catered to 50s, 60s, 70s era. Then 80s, my
15:31father purchased. We had 80s, 90s played. We shut down in 94 and now with the help of
15:37PVR, this is the third life which is as per the new generation. So let's hope.
15:45Thank you sir. Thank you. Zoya, I have another question for you. You know, talking about
15:48this 15 year journey aur kaise ek ke baad ek blockbusters aapne diye hain. When you
15:53look back at this journey of yours, what is that one thing is waqt jo zehen mein aati hai
15:58ki wow, yeh hua hai ya yeh hua hai?
16:03I mean, the fact, the first thing is that I wanted to be a filmmaker and I made a movie.
16:10I think that's awesome. And today, I'm still making movies and that's awesome. So I still
16:16have a job. So I'm very grateful. I love what I do. I love cinema. And this industry
16:22is just, it's got all my heart, this industry. So I mean, I don't want to be anywhere else.
16:28This is my home. So I'm very happy to be here.
16:31And when your movies are showing, we don't want to be anywhere else. We want to be here
16:35at PVR, Iron Ox. Reema, this one's for you. Please tell me, you know, you worked with
16:39her for quite some time now. What is that one thing? We often say ki yeh picture alag hai.
16:45These are the words that we kind of use every now and then. What is that one thing about
16:50Zoya's storytelling or direction that actually, you know, sets it apart from everything else,
16:56everybody else's work?
16:58Actually, I think I already told you that in what I said the last time. I think it's
17:03take, you know, because, you know, 10 directors can do the same story. But it's Zoya's take
17:11on it. I think that makes it different.
17:14You know, talking about 10 directors doing a similar kind of stuff. I believe when you,
17:20the both of you had started long time back, there was this short story that you guys were
17:23supposed to direct, right? Likh toh liya tha. Woh kya hua? Woh direct nahi kiya? Kab dekhne
17:29milega?
17:31I don't know when we're going to do it.
17:33But that's going to happen?
17:34You know, when we started off, we were assistants. We met when we were assistant directors. And
17:39we thought we'd write a short story and co-direct it. What happened through that process was we
17:46understood we could write together, but we can never direct together, ever. So that's where
17:52that was the learning from that experience.
17:53No, but 20 years later, that changed too, because we did co-direct an episode in Made in Heaven
17:58together.
18:00So the next time you guys do a movie together, yehi chalaenge woh. Ki humne kaha tha. Ji aap
18:04phir se suniye Zoya ka kya kehna tha, Reema ka kya kehna tha. But I'm talking about your
18:08collaboration with Zoya. What is that one most special film that you guys have worked on?
18:15And it'll always be with you.
18:17Yeah, honestly, these questions are very impossible to answer.
18:20Koi ek.
18:21Aapka favourite bachcha kaunsa hai? Kya keh sakta hai insan? Honestly, it's tough to say.
18:27I can say that probably the most fun we had making a film was making Zindagi Na Milegi
18:32together. Because the kind of film that it was, you could have fun. So that was probably the most
18:37enjoyable experience, not just for me as an actor, I think for everyone on the film. It was, but
18:42every film, be it Luck By Chance, be it Dil Dhadak Nedo, and anything in the future that she'll cast
18:46me in, will always be very, very fun and very enjoyable.
18:50Talking about Luck By Chance, how was it then? Again, journey ki baat ho rahi hai. It is only
18:55fair ki woh pehle din ko yaad karein hum, ki jab woh direct kar rahi thi aapko.
18:59Mujhe matlab bahut clearly yaad nahi hai ki what was the first day of shoot?
19:06Mere khayal se, please correct me if I'm wrong.
19:09Chiplo. The first scene we shot was Farhan, Isha, the character Sharvani and Dimple,
19:16the Neena character, having breakfast together. That was the first scene we ever shot. My first
19:22shot was a mid-shot on Dimple Kapadia. So she's my first actress ever.
19:29Farhan, for you, how was it like, of course, Zoya directing you?
19:34I mean, the thing is that Zoya and me have worked closely, creatively since Dil Chahta Hai.
19:41She's been involved in Dil Chahta Hai, she was involved in Laksh and a lot of the other films
19:45that Excel has done. So it wasn't something that I was surprised that, oh my God, she said she can
19:50direct or she knows about filmmaking. You know what I mean? Aisa tha nahi. So it felt like a very
19:55natural, organic extension from what she was doing before into directing, into writing and then into
20:01directing. Toh main bilkul comfortable tha set pe. Mujhe pata tha ki isko woh jaanti hai ki woh
20:08kya kar rahi hai, woh jaanti hai ki performances se, scene se usse kya chahiye. So I was just doing
20:12my part of playing the character. Retrospective ka jab yeh idea aaya tha Zoya, toh kya
20:19discussion hua tha? How did it all, you know, stem? Kaha se kaha iski shurwaat hui?
20:24I mean, my office told me this and I got really excited that this was happening and it was
20:29coinciding with nine years of DDD and I mean, there's one aspect of you says, am I retrospective?
20:37Am I kind of done? But then there's another part of you that's like jumping with joy that your
20:42films are going to be on the big screen again. So it's very exciting and I'm really grateful for this.
20:48Ajay sir, what was the idea behind all this and why Zoya Akhtar?
20:55Agar aap body of work dekhen, excel, I mean, you're right, Ritesh is being missed here. Right from
21:00Dil Chahta Hai, you know, and you know, Zoya's films, Farhan's films,
21:05the body of work is just incredible. So it has to be done. Retrospective ko aise hi koi nahi
21:10kar sakte hain. It has to be of somebody who's done incredible work and their body of work is
21:14just amazing. So I thought in 15 years, luck by chance, it's been quite some time. So I think
21:20even though she's got many, many more years and decades of doing incredible work, I still thought
21:24that it says something to be celebrated. And so that's right. It was an easy decision.
21:29Of course, indeed. You know, talking about the films that they've selected for this festival,
21:35ab wohi Farhan bhai wala baat ho jayegi ki kaise main apna favourite bachcha chunu yaha pe.
21:39Lekin what is that one movie that you're really excited to see on that big screen one more time?
21:44I think, I think the first one is always special. And there are two firsts here. One is Luck by
21:51Chance, the first film I directed. And the second one is Talash, which is the first film we wrote
21:56together. So I think our first collaboration, Farhan is an actor, was on one and a writer was
22:01on one. So I think that's the, those are the two. Right. Reema, for you, kaunsi ek movie rahegi
22:06that you would love to watch again? I'm more like in Farhan's zone, you know, how do you choose
22:12between the kids? Yeah, it's very hard. I love. No, I love all of them. I do. I love all of them.
22:20Right. Sanjay sir, what is that one thing jo abhi, you know, way forward kya hoga
22:24leedo ke liye jo humein aage dekhne ko milega aur kya kya hoga is partnership mein aage?
22:29Yaha aapko sirf achhi pichre milenge. Aur house full milega, ticket milge toh bata na humein.
22:35Yeh kar diya sir aapne. Yeh kar diya aapne. We have this, you know, eminent journalist humare
22:41saath hain aapne. Woh mujhe bas abhi bata rahe the. Ek film jo ki Friday ko release hui the.
22:45Do din tak toh aaram se tickets mil gaye. Uske baad word of mouth se. Woh itni aage gayi
22:49ki tickets ke liye line lagayi thi Sohail bhai ne, hai na?
22:56Tezhaab 28 show pack maari thi. Sirs. Aise toh list hai lambe.
23:05There's a lot of people remember. Jaws.
23:07Right, right. So that's all we have for you. Ladies and gentlemen, I think.
23:14Thank you. Thank you.
23:17Thank you so much Zoya and congratulations on this. I remember watching my first movie in
23:21Mumbai in 2009 at a PVR. It was luck by chance. And I don't know kitne saare aise log hain jinko
23:27woh ek udaan mili. You know, they've got that inspiration to do something in the industry.
23:33All thanks to you. Zoya Akhtar, ladies and gentlemen.
23:36We'll have a quick photo op and for that I'd like to invite
23:39Miss Niharika Bijli and Mr. Aryan Gupta ladies and gentlemen.
24:35Why?

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