We’ve inherited supporting good stories: B.R. Chopra’s grandsons

Mumbai, Aug 13 (IANS) Films are a medium of storytelling rather than a project of financial investment, aver Abhay Chopra and Juno Chopra -- the young grandsons of late legendary filmmaker B.R. Chopra -- who have backed the forthcoming "Bareilly Ki Barfi".

They say they are following in the footsteps of their illustrious grand father by supporting good stories to bring a change in cinema.

"Bareilly Ki Barfi", a romantic comedy featuring Ayushmann Khurrana, Rajkummar Rao and Kriti Sanon, is directed by Ashwini Iyer Tiwari. Its trailers exude an atypical vibe.

Asked about what made them choose a film which is far from the formulaic, Juno told IANS here: "We have inherited supporting a good story, so we have that instinctive nature and gut feeling to go for it if we like the script. If you look at our production house B.R. Films' work, we always supported stories that deserved to be told.

"So yes, it's gut feeling and instinctive nature I guess."

Agreeing to this, Abhay added: "We are taught to look at a film as a medium of storytelling rather than a project. And we are the first audience (of the film). So if we are enjoying the story, we share it with the world through the medium of cinema. A good story is all that matters... Rest is a gut feeling that I think we have got from our grand papa and papa."

The boys are the sons of late filmmaker Ravi Chopra, who had directed "The Burning Train" and "Baghban"

As a banner, B.R. Films is known for producing TV Series like "Mahabharat", "Ramayan" and "Vishnu Puran", and films like "Naya Daur", "Sadma", "Humraaz", "Bhootnath" and "Baghban".

In the case of "Bareilly Ki Barfi", the original story of the film has come from French author Nicolas Barreau's "The Ingredients of Love", a novel that Juno read and liked. Then they approached "Dangal" director Nitesh Tiwari and asked him if they can do a film on it.

Nitesh has penned the script, while his wife Ashwini Iyer Tiwari has directed it.

"I asked Nitesh if he can pen a script based on the book. Even he liked the idea. We know Ashwini for quite some time. We offered her to direct the film before 'Nil Battey Sannata' because we have seen her conviction and approach towards any story," Juno said.

According to him, Kriti agreed to do the film pretty instinctively even without knowing who else was there in the film.

"We were there at Karan's place (filmmaker Karan Johar who happens to be their relative) where we met Kriti. We just shared the story in a few lines and she happily agreed because she loved the story," Juno recounted.

Abhay added: "I think that is what happens if the story is good... The cast, director and everything falls into place."

While in the last five years, many experimental films have been making a mark at the box office and in the minds of the audience, the Chopra brothers believe that a creative idea should be encouraged by good producers and if the aim is clear, the audience will be there to receive it.

"Our generation is well-exposed to world entertainment. So as Hindi film producers, we should encourage stories that are more with connective elements rather than aspirational. People love watching a real life story with a twist, even though they have a chance of watching content on the digital platforms, they are buying a ticket to watch a film. You can't fool them," said Juno.

The film is releasing on August 18.