MUMBAI: Filmmaker Aanand L Rai, who is currently working with Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan for their upcoming film Zero, says the despite a career of over 25 years in filmdom.
“I am fascinated to see how a man with 25 years of a career, with so much success, fame, so many blockbusters, can still have childlike energy. He did not burn out.”
“He is the most obedient actor I have seen ever in my life. His energy on set is like a young boy doing his first film. I want to say that he is the best newcomer a director will get on the set… In fact, that is something I am trying to learn from him,” Rai said.
Zero also features Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif in lead roles. Khan plays a dwarf in the movie.
Rai said the strenuous shoot of the film was made smooth by the talented cast.
“Physically the shoot was very exhausting but the whole team had a great time working towards it because of the fact that I worked with a bunch of enthusiastic actors, and Khan saab is one of them.”
“He surprises me to an extent that at times it scares me to think whether as a director I am able to match up to his level of talent. He is an extraordinary man, not just as an actor but also as a human,” said the director.
On whether there were any creative differences on set, Rai said, “Well, SRK always has a way of saying things; he’ll never say ‘I don’t do a scene like this’. His approach is always suggestive. He would say, ‘Shall we do it like this?’ His attitude towards people is so nice,” Rai said.
As a filmmaker, Rai’s focus has always been on good stories and experimental subjects.
He said: “With experience, I have realised that the audience is growing every year to accept more experimental cinema. There is a synergy between audience and filmmakers.
“As a film director, I cannot say there is no audience for a certain genre of a story because a different group of audience is receptive towards a variety of stories. Now we have an audiences who support a film like Baahubali and a content-heavy film like Newton in the same year.”
Zero is scheduled to release on December 21.
