‘Karwaan’ Director Akarsh Khurana On the Love & Hate He’s Getting

Filmmaker Akarsh Khurana on his equation with his actors Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan and Mithila Palkar

Director Akarsh Khurana is thrilled with the response he’s getting for Karwaan. After a forgettable debut with High Jack, the veteran theatre artiste has hit bulls eye with his second film Karwaan featuring Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan and Mithila Palkar in key roles. I had a quick chat with him about the genesis of Karwaan, working with Irrfan and Dulquer, and what he plans to do next.

So tell us how did Karwaan come together - the story is credited to Bejoy Nambiar, the screenplay is written by you and Adhir Bhatt and dialogues by Hussain Dalal.

Akarsh Khurana: Adhir and I both acted in David, directed by Bejoy. During the shoot, Bejoy bounced this concept off us, of a wrong body being delivered to someone who lost their father. We jumped at it, seeing the potential for some uncomfortable comedy stemming from this bizarre premise. So we went off and fleshed it out. Shaukat is Adhir’s brainchild, and we threw in more characters, and came back with a fleshed out flow. Bejoy liked it and then the two of us wrote out a detailed screenplay. Finally, we got Hussain Dalal to take a shot at the dialogue draft, and he brought in lots of magic.

How many drafts did the script go through before you arrived at the final one and also what was the time taken to write it?

Akarsh Khurana: Our first draft was ready in a couple of months. Then with tweaks, a good draft was ready four years ago. Our second and third drafts actually happened much closer to shoot, early last year. More to update the context and such, and to reduce the indulgences. I think our shooting script was the third draft.

And how easy or difficult is it to get 3 minds to work in sync - did you guys finish the screenplay and hand it over to Hussain for dialogues or was it a to and fro process?

Akarsh Khurana: Adhir and Hussain are friends of mine. I’ve known Adhir since college, back in 1998. And Hussain and I have a strong theatre connection since 2007. I feel like a lot of us theatre buddies grew together, so sync was never an issue. I don’t remember Hussain ever not being involved, but yes, the actual process was Hussain doing a pass on his own time, and then me doing a little touch up. 

You said in an interview that you are a sucker for “on-the-road” movies - have you ever analysed this fascination for films that have a road trip in them?

Akarsh Khurana: Have I said that? I’m not sure. I’m a sucker for Alexander Payne’s films. This extends to films like Jim Jarmusch’s Broken Flowers (which has a trip) and Jason Reitman’s Up in the Air (which has many trips). I guess I’m a sucker for real characters in a mumble-core world. But I watch and love everything. I grew up worshipping Spielberg, but his more intimate work like The Terminal resonates with me more. The bigger stuff, or the sci fi stuff, I adore and watch with awe. But then he’s generally loved. I was asked to name more specific genre-film directors that I love. Besides Payne, there’s Baz Luhrmann, which I think has something to do with my long association with theatre and my affection from childhood for musicals, and Park Chan Wook, who delves into such darkness that I can’t find a rational explanation, besides the need to cross over to the dark side. Getting back to road trips, I co-wrote Tripling, which really made me cut my teeth on the sub genre. I think it allows for conversations and conflicts and is a metaphor for internal journeys. That’s what appeals to me. That and the changing landscape.

You are a fan of Alexander Payne and the influence is quite there -  there are flawed characters, a search for self, the loss of a close one, rooted in reality with a sense of pain but it’s also funny. Which of Payne’s films have left a deep impact on you?

Akarsh Khurana: I’m so glad you think the influence is there. My absolute favourite is The Descendants, followed perhaps by Nebraska. There is no film of his I haven’t liked. Be it Election, or About Schmidt, there is no one who milks discomfort for comedy better than him in my opinion. I directed three plays based on short stories by Ruskin Bond. And when I was in discussions with him for the second play, he said “the greatest comedy comes out of sadness”. I think that stayed with me.

Who did you cast first - Irrfan or Dulquer? And how difficult or easy was it to get them on board?

Akarsh Khurana: Irrfan. We had never imagined that we would be punching that much above our weight. But when Ronnie Screwvala and Priti Rathi Gupta joined hands and decided to make this movie, Ronnie suggested we go narrate to him. At worst he’d say no. Also Irrfan was fond of Hussain Dalal and his work, so was perhaps a bit more inclined to hear a narration. He said yes instantly. We were stumped. Dulquer was a suggestion of Shubh Shivdasani, my associate producer. I had seen Charlie, and I quickly watched Ustad Hotel and O Kadhal Kanmani, and there was no doubt in my mind about range. But the man himself I fell in love with when we met. I was hoping he’d say yes, because it was clear during the narration that he was getting the film. He said yes in a week.

You’ve placed the story in the south of India - Karnataka - Tamil Nadu - Kerala, where as since you were making a Hindi film - it could have been up North, maybe Delhi - Chandigarh - Manali. What was your thought behind making sure it was shot down south?

Akarsh Khurana: Couple of things. This is a route I have done and a route I love. Also I think the North has been exposed too much, whether in Imtiaz Ali’s films, or even Tripling. Rajasthan, Punjab, Himachal, Goa, all have been seen too much in Hindi cinema. So that helped me stick to the route in my script. And people are tripping on Kerala after watching the film. I for one love Kerala deeply. And the alleys of Fort Kochi are right up mine. So this response makes me very happy.

Irrfan’s character - Shaukat is a delight to watch, he’s undoubtedly the scene stealer. How much of improvising did Irrfan do while shooting, any key scene that you remember where Irrfan added his input and took the scene a notch up?

Akarsh Khurana: A lot of Shaukat is written. And that’s what Irrfan signed up for. Then he built a persona for him. As a director, I thrive on spontaneity and improvisation. So I would encourage all of them to open up, own the character, speak their minds. Shaukat is 80% written and 20% improvisation, which was always on point. Irrfan threw in a lot of gags that stayed, my favourite being when he asks “pata karo mare bhi hai ke nahi” on hearing about the mix up. But it really is his silences when he takes things many notches up. Dulquer has that too.

As a director did you approach Irrfan and Dulquer differently? Considering that Irrfan has decades of experience and Dulquer is relatively new, both their characters in the film are extremes, and I am sure they have different personalities too.

Akarsh Khurana: Dulquer had done 25 films before Karwaan. And given Mithila’s time in front of the camera for all the stuff she has aced on the internet, I was the only one who was relatively new. But to answer your question, no. They all knew what they were doing. We chatted about scenes, did a couple of rehearsals, and let it flow. Of course my equations were different. Mithila, I have known since she was a teenager, Dulquer and I became friends, and with Irrfan it was a very friendly working relationship, but not of the backslapping variety. There will always be a little awe and intimidation, and rightly so.

I was really curious about Avinash and Shaukat’s backstory though - how do they know each other, where would they have met? Are they really good friends or just acquaintances?

Akarsh Khurana: They used to be neighbours. There’s a line in the film where Shaukat refers to that. But I didn’t want to harp on that. The film is also about finding friendships in unexpected places. And I wanted the core one to be just a bit strange as well.

How was it directing your dad (Akash Khurana) on Karwaan - especially on a film which comments on that never-ending cycle of a parent-child relationship?

Akarsh Khurana: I‘ve directed dad before. On stage and in a television movie. He never plays his “dad card”. He’s an actor, and a thoroughly professional one. He is also the easiest actor to direct, because he knows what I want and need and gives it to me right away. I planned the shoot schedule in such a way that I shot with him in the first scene, and then with Dulquer and him. He was kind of the safety net that helped me ease into the schedule. Contrary to the film’s theme, he and I have a very good relationship.

The Kerala leg of the schedule must have been fun, Dulquer being an insider must have known the best places to get excellent fish, parotta and beef too?

Akarsh Khurana: The Kerala schedule was a party. Dulquer is secretly quite a foodie, so yes, he was full of recommendations. He can’t go out much in public himself, but he took vicarious pleasure. The team was full of Mallus as well. My executive producer, line producer, sound designer - it was a homecoming for all of them. Sanjeevkumar Nair, our EP, insisted on some local dishes in every meal on set, which was amazing. Also, with the amount of time I’ve spent in Kerala, I like to think of myself as something of an insider too. The food was outstanding. We all gained weight.

What’s the best and worst compliment that you’ve got from someone who’s seen Karwaan?

Akarsh Khurana: The best: people coming up to me moist eyed after watching the film and saying they’re going to call their dads. The worst: that I’m a racist, sexist, xenophobe. I mean, my foreigner friends are watching it and loving it, but Indians are getting offended that Shaukat is rude to foreigners. I mean, inappropriate humour is supposed to be, well, inappropriate. And even with that trait there’s a graph, when right at the end he acknowledges a foreigner and sits beside another at dinner.

What are you working on next?

Akarsh Khurana: I’m not sure. I couldn’t emotionally invest in anything till Karwaan came out. There’s talk of a web series, which is a dark infidelity thriller, which I’m hoping works out. Early talks of another film. But most importantly, I need a vacation, and I need to direct something for the stage. I produced two plays this year, but I’m itching to get back into creating a play.