Sajid Nadiadwala is a happy man today. His latest release Phantom, starring Katrina Kaif and Saif Ali Khan, has worked. The producer is happier still for his leading man, whose last few films haven’t done too well.
FOLLOW YOUR GUT
Says a industrywallah, “Sajid is like that. even with Heropanti, he wanted the film to work for Tiger Shroff. The high of giving a hit with a newcomer normally beats the high of delivering a hit with a star. But in this case he is pleased because Saif has been appreciated.
Sajid has always followed his instincts; the box-office status of an actor has never mattered to him. which is why he signed Saif for his next film Rangoon, even before Phantom released. Says Sajid, “Hits and flops happen in everyone’s careers. Be it an actor or a filmmaker, you can’t let that affect your conviction. You have to follow your gut and believe in your film. Nothing else matters.”
The comparisons with Akshay Kumar’s Baby didn’t hamper Phantom’s journey. Sure, the films had a similar plot, but Kabir Khan’s treatment and vision is different from that of Neeraj Pandey. There were also comparisons to Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Kabir’s last release.
LOT OF POSITIVES
Saif says, “There’s a lot of positives to Phantom. From the heroine, to the producer, to the director and his last movie BB. And I couldn’t have asked for more. Also, we executed this film to the best of our ability and I am glad it has been appreciated.” He adds, “Phantom is a sort-of redemption. Some films didn’t work and thank God, Phantom did. Somewhere, the combination of Sajid Nadiadwala and Kabir Khan was probably the most credible combination among these films. That has paid off.”
WORD-OF-MOUTH HELPED
Of Phantom’s success, Kabir says, “There’s always a hope that a film will do well especially when you are treading a slightly different path and not a mainstream one. I was a little anxious before, I knew there would be takers; how many, I wasn’t sure. Phantom had a slow Friday morning, but picked up in the day and by evening, the shows were strong. I realise that word-of-mouth has become an element today at the BO. As more people started coming in, it had a snowballing effect and over the weekend, the film over-performed. We weren’t expecting those figures on Saturday. On Monday, the film sustained at a decent level and Tuesday, too, it was moving along smoothly. To get a graph for a film like this, is great. The biggest problem in our film industry is that the more successful directors are, the more safe they play whereas success should allow them to push the boundaries to do different cinema.”
