Phone Bhoot stars Katrina Kaif, Ishaan Khatter disclose why they agreed to be part of horror-comedy | Exclusive

Katrina Kaif, Ishaan Khatter, and Siddhant Chaturvedi will be seen together for the first time in the upcoming horror-comedy Phone Bhoot. In an exclusive conversation with DNA India, Katrina and Ishaan revealed why they agreed to be a part of the film and how was the experience during the shooting.

When we asked the two of them to share the reasons behind signing up for the film, apart from the obvious interesting concept of Katrina playing a 'bhootni' and Ishaan and Siddhant playing the two 'bhootbusters', the Sooryavanshi actress said, "I think it was just phenomenal writing. Comedy is one of my favourite genres. I had not done a comedy film in quite some time, and I found this script absolutely funny. After a point you don't have to calculate and go with your gut, you are just going with an instinct, it's a feeling, and that's the basis of how you chose your films."

Katrina added, "It's a feeling that if I am enjoying this, then people are also going to relate to this and have a good time. It is an unusual genre, and I know it may not have all the trappings of certain things that one normally has in a film, but I think the genre and the space are unique enough in the sense that if it finds a connection, then it can stick in a really good way, you know it can be a film which can people really remember and becomes one of those memorable kinds of film that stays with you."

Ishaan also shared the same thoughts and replied, "When I heard the film, I was quite taken by the fact that it's an out-and-out farcical comedy, so it is very ensured in what it is trying to do. There was great clarity when they wrote it and this genre of a really good Hindi film comedy, u know it always works, even though there are tropes in them. We all have that little bit of Bollywood inside us and this film took that and turned it on its head because it has a quirk to it, it has a unique new-age language. At the same time, at its very core, it is a comedy, it is a punchy relentless comedy. I found myself laughing for pretty much the two hours when the film was being narrated to me. And with comedy it's clear if it works, it works and if it doesn't work, it doesn't work. So you are laughing if it is bringing a physical reaction out of you and it is evident and this film did that, the script really did that and our writers Ravi and Jassy (Ravi Shankaran and Jasvinder Singh Bath) wrote themselves into the film. So basically, they are Gullu and Major and they are very interesting quirky characters. All of what she mentioned coupled with the fact that it is almost like an Andaaz Apna Apna in the horror world."

READ | Phone Bhoot stars Katrina Kaif, Ishaan Khatter talk about box office clash with Double XL, Mili | Exclusive

Since the trailer looked like an absolute mad-cap ride, we asked Katrina and Ishaan if the experience of shooting the film was as fun as the trailer suggests. Recalling her experience of shooting the film, Katrina told DNA, "The experience was as fun as you can see in the trailer. That's a good representation of the kind of atmosphere that was there on the sets. A script like that, a film like that, the world-the genre of the film, it just inherently makes you laugh and smile. You know, the writing was fantastic, everyone's character was so well defined that it gave us clear kind of barometers for our room and where we had to play in doing comedy, and then it was just down to creating the right atmosphere, the right vibe, improvising on the sets, we have a fantastic director with us Gurmeet (Gurmmeet Singh). He has directed Mirzapur. He has that fine sense, he knows the right balance, where to draw the line you know, trying to keep short control on it because you can't let things drag in comedy. You want the right beats, know when to hit it, know when to leave it one to hit it, so I think we had the combination of everything we could want to put together, hopefully, a really great enjoyable comedy film."

Sharing his experience of working on the film, Ishaan stated, "It is a fun film, It is a light-hearted film, it is not taking itself too seriously, you can come and have fun at our expense. After Mirzapur, Gurmmeet has made a kid-friendly film as well, which is rather interesting. But this has something for all kinds of audiences. It's childlike, it has full of pop culture references so if you are a fan of films from the 90s, and the 80s, you will have a lot of fun watching this film. It is like a two-hour meme, it's almost juvenile but it's just funny, it is so funny that you can like leave your brains at home, and come have a good time and even if you bring them, hopefully, you will find little references and little fun to be had. So, we had a great time doing this, and hopefully, the audience will feel that."

Phone Bhoot releases in cinemas on November 4. Directed by Gurmmeet Singh and written by Ravi Shankaran and Jasvinder Singh Bath, the horror-comedy is produced by Excel Entertainment, headed by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar.