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'If Anil Kapoor had given me trouble, I would drag him by his ear'

The Hrishikesh Mukherjee interview continues...

But there were rumours that Anil Kapoor was giving you trouble?

Hrishikesh Mukherjee Click for bigger pic!

Those were wrong. The problem was that Anil Kapoor had to shave off his moustache and that was giving us some continuity problems. Because he was working in other films too. So he requested me to keep the scenes where he shaved off his moustache for the end. Or it would take him 15 days to grow it again and a false moustache doesn't look very nice.

The problem was that we finished the shooting and were waiting for him to get a break from other films that he couldn't manage. There was a slight delay, that's all.

Whenever he got the time, we completed the shooting accordingly. I call him Nilu and I am like his father. If he had given me trouble, I would drag him by his ear and get him on the sets. He would not give me any trouble.

How long did you take to complete this film?

The shooting took 60 days. But it took me a year to complete the film. These are artistes who are so busy with their work. You can't expect them to be free. These things happen. Those days it was different. There were four songs and I would picturise one song a day.

Anand; I made in 30 days despite Rajesh Khanna.

One year on a film is very reasonable. We had to go to Manali to shoot the songs. There were rains here and I couldn't shoot. Also, my story is based in a hill station. My film starts and ends from Chandigarh to Manali. I did some shooting in Lonavala too. But that's it.

What is Jhoot Bole... about?

It is a very simple story. It's about this man who is very simple and very down to earth. His son dies and his wife suffers from asthma. So he migrates to a hill station with wife and daughter. He brings up his daughter like he would a son.

He imparts all his love and values to her. He gives her complete freedom to do what she wants. Even sends her to the city for higher education. But he lays only two conditions. That she should never lie to him and she would marry a boy of his choice.

But the girl falls in love. Now the dilemma is how to convince her father and she doesn't want to hurt him. So she asks the boy to come to the hill station and convince her father of his good intentions. She tells him that in our society marriage doesn't happen between two individuals, but between two families.

Though the boy suggests they elope and marry, she refuses. So the boy comes to the hill station and tries to win over the father. The funny thing is that the father suspects the boy of being a cheat since he is too good to be true.

The father is a hard nut to crack and the boy keeps bungling all the time. The boy keeps telling the girl that her father is a very old fashioned man and that since she is educated, she should be more sensible. The girl is not convinced since she loves her father and believes in the values that her father gives her.

You think it is possible today to have these values?

Anil Kapoor and Juhi Chawla in Jhoot Bole Kauva Kaate Click for bigger pic!

Everybody has his or her own set of values in life. Is it not possible for a girl who has lost her brother and who has been brought up like the son in the family to love her parents and do what they want of her? I know girls who never married because they had a widowed mother to look after.

I needed somebody with a spiritual face and who could sacrifice for her parents. That was the most important thing I found in Juhi's face.

It's a simple story. No violence. No sex. No fights too! Just clean and nice.

How do you expect the film to fare?

I don't know how the film will do. There is a saying, 'do your duty and don't wait for the results.' That's the attitude I have. I will make good films, but won't bother much about how it does. That's in God's hands.

Do you believe in the values you have shown in your film?

You have to make films you believe in. My attitude towards life is easy. I won't hurt people around me or people who have brought me up. That's being selfish. Sacrifice has always been respected. I don't have any experience with selfishness or nastiness at all. Also no violence and vulgarity for me. That is why I make such films.

Maybe, people who make other kinds of films have that kind of attitude. It's after all how you look at life. Your attitude towards art reflects your attitude towards life.

Have you been doubtful about this film since you are making a movie after such a long time?

I have not been doubtful about the film at all. I have made 41 films in Bombay and all of them I made with confidence. I have survived them despite them doing well or not.

There was never any glamour in my films. You are convinced of an idea absolutely and that is how you convince the people too. Because you convey that confidence to them. Bimal Roy made films like Sujata, Bandini. They were all so middle class and simple. But they were hits.

What about audiences these days? They like something of everything. Like violence, sex, romance, dances...

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's photographs: Jewella Miranda

'It's very important to make a happy film that entertains'