Touted to be the king of sequels, Emraan Hashmi is working on yet another movie in the Raaz franchise. With Raaz Reboot, Emraan hopes that the movie will change the face of the genre of horror in India. In a quick chat, the actor talks about his affinity for horror movies and more... Excerpts:
Do you feel the pressure of carrying the Raaz legacy forward?
It’s not that stressful for me. However, I feel things come with their own responsibilities. There’s always a kind of anxiety about my films — be it solo or ensemble ones. You put in a lot of hard work and you want to succeed. I feel I have become used to it, having been a part of the industry for so many years now.
Raaz Reboot looks like a textbook Bhatt film. What’s the USP of the movie?
I feel this time we’re rebooting the horror genre. The way possession scenes have been treated in the movie, it goes with the intelligence of the audience. It’s very important these days, since the audience has been exposed to a lot over these years. Also, if there are layers of secrets in the film and the audience has guessed it in the beginning, it fails. So, we have to keep all these things in mind while making the film; the writing of the film is very taut.
Do you believe that horror is underrated in Bollywood?
I feel that horror is underrated even in Hollywood; we don’t see any horror films winning the Oscars. I guess that’s because a lot of directors don’t handle the genre properly. In our country, only Vikram Bhatt makes horror films since no one really understands it. In a way, it’s a good thing since he tends to monopolise it. Also, we don’t have budgets for horror films in India, compared to Hollywood, but there are a few Indian films that are culturally rich and which Hollywood can’t compare with.
So, you believe horror is a saleable genre in India?
We’ve made Rs 84 crore with Raaz 3, which is big money.
How was your experience working with newcomers?
Gaurav is a very hardworking boy. We shot in cold that ran into minus degrees in Romania. Both Kriti and Gaurav are amazing actors.
With a series of flops in the past, was it hard for you to get through the low phase?
I feel one has to come prepared for such kind of a phase in life. It’s foolish to expect to experience a constant high. I believe that low phases are real testing times, so you can prove your worth to the world. I believe that with the same amount of hard work, after a couple of films, you’re able to achieve success. It’s a matter of luck. It’s not the first time I’ve gone through a low phase; I still have the attitude I had during my previous rough patches; it’s just a matter of time. I don’t listen to background noise in the industry that things are not working out for
me.
How has life changed post your book The Kiss of Life?
It’s the same, but it’s just that we’ve gotten out of the danger zone with my son. We went through what seemed like hell for about a year-and-a-half. I’ve also put that experience in the book. I’m also creating awareness about cancer among general public.
