Old concept, new treatment

DIRECTOR'S CUT

Amit Saxena’s foray into Bollywood as a director in 2003, was marked with an erotic thriller Jism.

His bold move to give audiences an Indian version of an Lawrence Kasdan’s Body Heat (1981), proved to be successful. It’s been 10 years now and the director is ready to repeat the success with his next flick Nasha. The film is already making a buzz for its bold scenes by the film’s lead actress Poonam Pandey.

“After Jism, I got frustrated because I had no story to tell,” says Amit, who is making a comeback as director, with Nasha. “It wasn’t as if I had no work in the industry. I directed a comedy film Teena Ki Chabhi, about which people are not aware of as it was not released. So, I continued with editing of films like Sangharsh, Kasoor, Awara Paagal Deewana and many more,” says Amit.

Since Nasha will be a complete commercial film after Jism Amit shares his anxieties, “I obviously want this film to be successful. I was in fear for a fortnight when the film came on floors.”

But why was he apprehensive, considering Jism had been a hit at the box-office? “Jism was totally a new concept for Indian audiences. Since then, a lot of films have tried to replicate that notion. At that time I did not believe in serving unnecessary intimate scenes to the audience. But since then there have been a lot of changes when it comes to steamy scenes. So, it became important for me to present sensuality in a different way this time.”

Why did he choose to make a sensual film over any other genre? “Nasha is a new age film where an 18-year old falls in love with a woman little older than him. The concept is not new but the difference lies in the treatment. It presents my way understanding and depicting the love on screen. If bold scenes are required to present that love then it has to be shown but I have never believed in giving skin show importance over emotions.
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“I have added a new spin, making it a film that the country has never seen before,” he says. He clarifies that selecting debutant Poonam Pandey, who thinks of herself as a ‘sexy siren’ to make the film ‘different’ was not his decision. “Poonam was selected by the producer. I was simply given a choice of ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for direction of the film.

I decided to go with the flow but I had no apprehension working with Poonam because the script was awesome and working with Poonam was lovely. It didn’t look like she was a first timer.”