Amit Rai, "I approached Akshay Kumar as a producer for," Dharma" very late...not as an actor." I have been misquoted
His Shahid Kapoor starrer film, “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj” may have been shelved but he moves on with another film titled,” Dharma”. He regrets not having approached Akshay Kumar for,” Dharma’ as producer.
By : Lipika Varma
Update: 2025-07-24 12:33 GMT
Director Amit Rai in an exclusive Interaction with D.C-Director Amit Rai recipient of various National and International awards known for making out of the box films like,” Road to Sangam,” and then,” OMG2,’ a socially relevant film which was tagged as sex/porn film, while he roamed around looking for producers. Akshay Kumar liked the script and joined hands with him. His Shahid Kapoor starrer film, “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj” may have been shelved but he moves on with another film titled,” Dharma”. He regrets not having approached Akshay Kumar for,” Dharma’ as producer.
On doing films out of the box- OMG2 and Now Dharma-
Right from inception when you want to do a film which is out of the box. Challenges you face follow- firstly, you will not get people to do such a film. If you are roaming around with a script and you don’t get a positive response even from big production houses as most people thought it’s a sex or a porn film, OMG 2, was an educative film. This is when you lose hope. And you start pondering whether you should do this film or not. You lose conviction.
Praising Akshay Kumar for joining hands for OMG2-
I really salute Akshay Kumar who agreed to do my film OMG2 after just 20 minutes of its narration. But always, you will not get an understanding and giving [daanveer] actor/producer like him.
On approaching Akshay Kumar as producer for,” Dharma” -
I approached Akshay Kumar as a producer for my next, ‘Dharma” very late not as an actor - I have been misquoted. When one publication misquotes you, the rest follow it. You cannot do anything when the arrow is shot. My mistake I reached Akshay late.
On his next titled,” Dharma’ title-
This film is also like,” OMG” an educative film but you can’t place it in any genre. It is neither a thriller, courtroom drama nor a family film. It encompasses everything that any film has to say, it’s a wholesome entertainment film. This film is about the coexistence of humans along with nature. It’s a story of a dog and a boy. Also signifies -how we look towards any mishap that must have happened to any human-being or animal. We don’t have the empathy to wait for a minute and help anyone even if we see them dying on the roadside. Instead, we start making reels.
On conceptualization of,” Dharma” film-
Actually, one fine day I was thinking about an old film, “Hathi Mere Saathi,’ and suddenly this idea struck me… My next film-,” Dharma” is going to be different, highlighting empathy and conditions of animals. It’s not in the hero heroine format.
On turning as a producer with this film-
As a filmmaker, I am inclined to make good films that should give something to society. We have finished shooting. I am on the editing table with my next film, “Dharma. “With this film I have become self-reliant, since nobody was ready to produce, we have produced the film. Pankaj Tripathi is doing the pivotal role and Geeta Agarwal. The film is being shot in two parts -one takes place in Assam and another in Bihar. It’s not inspired by any real story.
On hiring cinematography from Hungary and Avengers action director-
We have hired Hungarian cameraman Mate Herbai and well-known action director Isaac Hamon who directed,” Avengers ‘along with action director Sunil Rodrigues. We did the action sequence with-300 dogs shot.
On Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj being Shelved was Shahid Kapoor responsible-
I don’t want to pinpoint any particular individual to be the reason. Everybody wants to follow the trend and go by the wave. Yes, the industry is star driven. And there exists the fight of one upmanship. After proving myself with my earlier films having bestowed upon me with awards, I wonder where I stand today. Finally, jo shaktishaali hota hai wahi story decide karta hai. The changes he [Shahid Kapoor] wanted to do was not bad, it was for good as well. I don’t want to discuss this as I don't wish to sound like the victim. Yeh kuch 8/9 mahine pehle ki baat hai. Definitely, you get discouraged- how will you get to do work even after proving my craft.
On industry being star driven-
The industry is star driven; the public has declared them as super stars and empowered them. Film making is above all we should go back to our roots. Earlier we would write a script and then look for the cast. It's vice versa now we make projects. We are responsible for not allowing the audiences to throng into theatres as we are looking for shortcuts to make money. South film makers keep their story above all and then they look for stars so their films are doing well. We need to go back to our roots.