‘People in the Industry often Praise Each Other Behind Closed Doors’ | ‘People often praise in closed rooms in the industry’: Mohit Suri told himself Sandeep Reddy Wanga’s fan; Bole-today songs are made according to the reels

Director Mohit Suri has launched on the big screen of two new faces through his film ‘Saira’. Apart from actors in this film, he has also given a chance to singer and music composer. However, this is not the first time. Mohit has been doing this from the initial film of his career. In a conversation with Dainik Bhaskar, Mohit has spoken on the music of his films, working with newcomers.

Apart from common people, ‘Saira’ is also getting a lot of love from the industry. Sandeep Reddy Wanga also wrote a lot about the trailer. How do you see it?

I appreciate this thing heartily. I think only a very solved and a secure person can praise the work of others. I messaged him personally after watching ‘Animal’. I did not publicly praise, I should have done this.

After watching ‘Animal’, I realized that I had become Sandeep Reddy Wanga fan. He also messaged me at the time of Saira’s teaser. I was thankful to him for this. He also praised by tweeting at the time of the trailer. I would say that there are few such people. People often praise each other in closed rooms. Public forums are competing with each other. I praise Sandeep for this.

The specialty of your films is music. You also give a chance to the new artist. The new artist has got a chance in this film too.

The film has been composed by a new artist Rishabh Kant in this film. He is a new glitch pop artist. I think it is very important to give a chance to a new artist to train music. Just as the style is changing, so music. We often disconnect with success. When I have music composer and singer Mithun, which I call Rahul Dravid. They are my wall and strong foundation. They always bring with me the basis of a level, which no one can break. In such a situation, I again experiment with new people.

People like this film Sachin-tradition and Vishal Mishra are also associated with whom I have not worked before. But all these are stabilized people. I did not want to repeat my own work. Filmmaker has a tendency, working with the same team. But his power goes to create bean magic. I think when you make your base, then it is very important to bring a new artist in the project. Listen to their voice, their story. Give them a chance to express them. I have tried to do the same in my career.

You are a trend setter in a way. You gave a chance to multi music directors in your first film ‘Zahra’.

It was not a trend, actually an attempt to survive. When I started a career, I was just 22 years old. No stabilized music director wanted to work with me. He felt that it is very small, what direction it would give. In compulsion, I started working with a lot of young boys and bands. Gradually my disqualification became my style. The absence of an option became my biggest strength.

The music of ‘Poison’ was the fourth best -selling album in the year 2005.

In ‘Aashiqui 2’, ‘Listen’ was not a song but you brought it to the film. Is there such an anecdote with Saira?

Two songs of this film were made but by then I did not have the title of the film. I always knew that the last song that would come in this film will also be its title. I was looking for a song for six months and I was not meeting. I had earlier heard a song Ishq by singer Faheem Abdullah. I was in Dubai and I called Tanishq Bagchi and said that I have to work with these boys. Tanishq told that these boys had come to meet me. We were shooting this film, at that time the title production number-76 of the film.

After I returned from Dubai, Sumana Ghosh had signed me Saira title. At that time I was not because Saira is a hit song of him. Then later I mentioned this to my lyricist Irshad Kamil Saheb, so he said it is good. He explained to me the meaning of Saira and told how this title can connect with my film. I then went to Irshad ji and asked if we can do the word Saiya. At the last minute, Saira title track came and the magic was created.

In 2013, ‘Aashiqui-2’, built at a cost of Rs 15 crore, did a business of Rs 109 crore.

You have made films out of the box. You don’t think the praise you do not meet right?

I enjoy celebrating my film, not myself. I believe that genius is an idea, not a human being. If a film is doing well, we should celebrate it. I come from a director family. We will all do good work but we will also do bad things. We will also see success and we will also fail.

Films like ‘Avarapan’, ‘Hamari Adhuri Kahani’ did not run at the box office but their songs are still in people’s minds. Now the cult of these films is considered.

The film ‘Saira’ has a dialogue that hit songs will come and will play for four months. People will dance on them and then they will go. The songs that are remembered, they remain in the heart, not in the mind. The songs that are remembered in the mind are not made nowadays. I will not judge anyone else for this. The more emotion and effort you put in the song, the more universal the song will be. Nowadays people are following algorithms and reels and are not realizing the song.

The ‘Saira’ title track is six and a half minutes. Many people told me to make this three and a half minutes. I think there will be emotion in the song, then people will make their reel by using that much. Why should I make songs according to the reel? I think nowadays we are making songs with mind and not from the heart. There is a lot of need to make a song from the heart.

Fans eagerly wait for you and Imran’s pair. Will their wish be fulfilled?

I will work with him whenever Imran tells me. Imran is not only my first hero but also my elder brother. If I tell him today that there is a role, then he will do it for me without reading the script. Our relationship is like this. But I do not want to do this. When someone is very confident in you, then the responsibility towards him increases. As long as I do not have a great script for Imran, I cannot ask him to work with him.

Mohit Suri has made most of the films with Emraan Hashmi in his career.

Any complex found for ‘Saira’ that is very close to your heart?

I had decided by watching Aditya sir’s film that I want to become a director. When Aadi Sir and Rani Maam saw the film and said that they liked the film very much, then there was a fan boy moment for me. Both of them said that this is the film which he wanted to make for his company and has been waiting since long. He said that it will bring success or not, but you have made a very good film. You have won for us.