The Akarsh Khurana directed Karwaan rode into theatres this Friday. This feel-good road movie featuring Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan and Mithila Palkar is getting good reviews and is specially being noticed for Irrfan’s outstanding role as the blabber mouth but good at heart Shaukat and his hilarious one line repartees. I chatted with Hussain Dalal, the dialogue writer of Karwaan, about his journey with the film. Shaukat’s character is incidentally inspired by Hussain himself! Read on...
Q. The first thing I want to ask is - what were you smoking while writing the lines for Irrfan’s character Shaukat?
Hussain Dalal: Main nasha nahi karta... sirf zindagi ka nasha karta hoon :)
(I don’t smoke anything, I am on a high on life)
Q. Ok, now that’s done, let’s start with your career as a writer - you dabbled in a bit of TV and landed the job of writing dialogues for Dharma Productions’ Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani - which was like a big banner film, how did that happen?
Hussain Dalal: So, I’ll tell you my favourite story all over again. I was doing a lot of theatre (still do) with Akarsh Khurana and one of my closest friends Ali Fazal, who I also met in the theatre was talking to Ayan around the time he was meant to start Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. Ayan casually mentioned that he needed a dialogue writer and Ali said ‘Arre mera dost bhi likhna ckahta hai, woh kuch random writing karta hai.. meet him’. I met Ayan and told him I aim not really a writer, I am trying to see if I can write, Ayan’s response to that was ‘why don’t you write these 3 scenes?’ I wrote the scenes and the next week he called and said ‘karega?’. In a nut shell my life story is basically a story of Ayan taking a chance, a really random chance.
Q. Your association with Akarsh Khurana (the director of Karwaan), started with theatre, can you take us through how that relationship evolved?
Hussain Dalal: Akarsh is family to me. I met Akarsh also randomly and asked him for work. We did a play together in 200, we became friends instantly and we’ve worked together a lot in the past 12 years. He’s one of the largest reasons for me having a career in the real world. I mean, we’ve done over 30 plays together, that says a lot.
Q. What stage was the script and screenplay of Karwaan at when you came on board as dialogue writer?
Hussain Dalal: I came on board as soon as Akarsh had a structure ready. Once the screenplay was ready I jumped in.
Q. Karwaan has three distinct characters - Avinash, Shaukat and Tanya - what was your brief while writing for them, because you had to not just keep the story going, you also had to unspool each character’s personal journey within the larger story.
Hussain Dalal: I mean this is where the real craft of Akarsh comes in, he never over directs, just shows you the right path. So he spoke to me about the film and how he saw it and I took it from there. These three people are a lot like some people we know, I mean to be honest, Akarsh is a lot like Avinash - calm and sober and kind, and I’m unfortunately a lot like Shaukat.
Q. So besides you, was the character of Shaukat inspired by anyone else? Irrfan of course brings so much to the role, but what was your brief for Shaukat.
Hussain Dalal: Shaukat is a mix of a lot of people I’ve met and been over the years. Shaukat is the misunderstood fool, the simple man from a small town who doesn’t know the protocol of elitist upbringing or the code of conduct on Twitter or Instagram. A man who doesn’t know a life beyond his, but he’s Chaplinesque in his approach to life, so all sorrow is dealt with humour. Akarsh’s brief to write Shaukat was, ‘Just go crazy Hussain!’
Q. How much of what you wrote for Shaukat was improvised by Irrfan during the shoot? An actor like Irrfan owns the character so well that it almost looks like he’s just said his lines impromptu at the moment.
Hussain Dalal: So Irrfan bhai is an honour to work with, he got the part at the first narration. He never changed a word. We got along like a house on fire. He’s a complete, pure pleasure to work with. Yes, he did improvise, he’s amazing at it, all our theatre backgrounds really helped us with the film and the execution of it.
Q. Which was the more difficult character to write for? Avinash - is an introvert, doesn’t talk much so you got that less words to brings his character out, on the other hand Shaukat is a motor mouth, but at the same time you need to ensure that everything that he says is of some value and adds to the story and his character.
Hussain Dalal: See, I always try to write personalities and performances over lines. If that makes sense, so once Akarsh and I cracked who or what these people were, we wrote them in no time.
Q. Where there any good scenes that had to be cut at the editing table because of the constraints of duration of the film?
Hussain Dalal: Yes, there are, and they’re hilarious. At least I think so!
Q. Which is your personal favourite line or dialogue from Karwaan.
Hussain Dalal: I don’t have any favourites among my own work. I mean to share a secret, I don’t own a single copy of anything I have written or acted in. I’m not attached to myself but if I had to choose one, I would say,
“Unhone hume bachpan mein hi dafna diya, yeh soch ke, ki hum khatam ho jayenge... woh jante nahi the ke hum beej hai, humaara dafan humaari shuruaat hai.”
Q. How have the reactions to Karwaan been so far, what’s the best compliment you’ve got for it?
Hussain Dalal: The reactions have been quite overwhelming to be honest, the best compliment is Akarsh and Irffan saying, lets do this again!
Q. What’s the worst part of being a dialogue writer?
Hussain Dalal: That when I’m nominated for awards, the writing award is in the technical awards segment, please explain to me how writing is a technical thing? The other draw back is, people think I’m much older than I am because they’ve not ever met me, and have just watched my movies. So when I act they’re like ‘Abey tu woh writer toh nahi ho sakta!’
Q. Tell me a writing mantra which you always abide by?
Hussain Dalal: Every film, irrespective of genre will allow you 10 minutes of saying what you truly believe in.. use it.
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