How Akshay Kumar’s ‘Rustom’ crushed Soni Razdan’s Nanavati directorial dream: ‘Someday, when the time is right, it will happen’ | Hindi Movie News
About ten years ago, Sony Razdan he was working on his second directorial venture, ‘Love Affair’. While her first film as a director, ‘Nazar’, released in 2005, was written by her husband and celebrated filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and produced under her brother Mukesh Bhatt’s banner Vishesh Films, ‘Love Affair’ was a completely different proposition. The film was being co-produced by Pooja Bhatt, Mahesh’s eldest daughter from his first marriage to Kiran Bhatt, along with Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series, under his production company Fish Eye Network Private Limited. However, the project never made it to the screen.
to the sound Razdan had Ali Fazal and Kalki Koechlin in his ‘Love Affair’ cast
Soni had even started the pre-production of ‘Love Affair’ in Ooty. The film was based on the infamous Nanavati murder case of 1959 and featured an impressive cast, with Ali Fazal playing Nanavati, Kalki Koechlin as his wife and Chandan Roy Sanyal playing the role of lawyer Ram Jethmalani. The film also featured Gulshan Devaiah, Hansika Motwani and Soni herself in key roles.
Soni Razdan reveals how Akshay Kumar’s ‘Rustom’ derailed his film Nanavati
Speaking to SCREEN in an exclusive interview, a disappointed Soni said, “Unfortunately, this happens with films.” Soni came very close to getting the cameras rolling before things went awry. “I was three weeks away from shooting, and things went wrong with the budget for one reason or another, which obviously I can’t talk about. Then it didn’t happen, and Rustom came out. When they made Rustom, I said it wasn’t the right time,” recalls Soni, referring to the killing of Tinu Suresh Desai, in which Nanava was also killed. The film starred Akshay Kumar in the lead role, inspired by real-life naval officer KM Nanavati.
Soni Razdan still hopes to make her Nanavati directorial one day
Although ‘Love Affair’ never made it to the silver screen, Soni hasn’t given up on her directorial ambitions. The film is still close to her heart and she is determined to bring it to life when the time is right. “I still want to do that film because it was a very, very good perspective on women’s history, on women’s history. It was a film about three people, and we followed the story very closely. And one day, when the time is right, it will happen,” says Soni.
On the Nanavati Murder Case and its screen adaptations
The Nanavati murder case is about a naval officer who killed his wife’s lover. The case has inspired many movies and shows over the years. RK Nayyar made Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke in 1963, starring Ashok Kumar, Sunil Dutt and Leela Naidu. Gulzar also made a film based on the case called ‘Achanak’ in 1973 starring Vinod Khanna, Om Shivpuri and Lily Chakravarty.
Soni Razdan played Mehra Nanavati in ‘The Verdict – State vs Nanavati’
Later, PN Menon also made a Malayalam film called ‘Ashthram’, based on the same case, starring Bharath Gopi, Mammootty and Jyothi. After “Rustom” became a hit, Ekta Kapoor did a web series called “The Verdict – State vs Nanavati” for ALTBalaji and ZEE5. It was the first adaptation to use the actual names of the case. The series starred Manav Kaul as Nanavati, Elli AvRam as his wife, and Viraf Patel as his lover. Interestingly, Soni Razdan also appeared in the serial, playing Mehra Nanavati.
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